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Negotiations between the Seattle Mariners and Robinson Cano have fallen through after the sides met last night in Seattle, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Feinsand notes that the possibility of Cano signing with the Mariners no longer exists after the team expressed a willingness to extend a nine-year, $225 million offer last night.
After initially offering an eight-year deal worth $200 million, the Mariners upped their offer to the nine-year deal and seemed to be moving towards a deal as of last night. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com described the talks a "serious" between the Mariners and Cano, but it seems as though a last-minute demand of a ten-year, $250-260 deal from agent Jay-Z caused team CEO Howard Lincoln "to explode", ending the meeting.
Cano was originally thought to be seeking a ten-year, $310 million deal, leaving him $150 million apart from the Yankees in negotiations. The sides are currently still two years and $50 million away from agreeing on terms, according to Feinsand, but the Yankees seem to be his only serious suitor now that the Mariners will not be signing him.
The Yankees have said that they are not willing to go past $200 million on Cano, and have been offering him seven-year contracts throughout the offseason. As spring training draws closer and the number of potential suitors dwindles, Cano will likely have to lower his demands and could sign back with the Yankees on their terms, contrary to the wishes of Jay-Z.
Other teams who have been linked to Cano include the Nationals, Tigers and Rangers, but none of those teams have committed to a serious pursuit as of yet. Expect many teams to feel out Cano and his representatives at next week's Winter Meetings in Orlando while the group continues to talk with the Yankees.
