By John Boyle The [Everett] Daily Herald
After coming up short on big-name free agents in recent years, the Mariners made a massive move today.
According to multiple reports, the Mariners have agreed to a 10-year deal worth $240 million with former New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano.
According to an ESPN report, Cano, who met with the Mariners on Thursday night, will take a physical Monday to finalize what would be the third largest deal in baseball history.
Cano, 31, is a five-time All Star and has finished in the top six of MVP voting in each of the past four seasons, but there is obviously still risk in a contract this big, especially one that extends past his 40th birthday. That being said, the Mariners’ ability to land the biggest name on the free agent market, even at a huge price, makes the relevant for the first time in a long time both to their fans, and also to other potential free agent targets.
This news is a big turn of events from earlier Friday when the New York Post reported that the deal had fallen apart after Cano’s agent, Jay Z, had “overplayed his hand” in negotiations with Mariners boss Howard Lincoln. Apparently in the end, cooler heads prevailed.
