Indians contract status update

[consigliere]

Ok, here is the current status on contracts for the following:

Eric Wedge- Shapiro says he is not going to discuss Wedge's contract until the end of season.
CC Sabathia- The Indians are not going to negotiate with him until next spring.
Travis Hafner- Contract negotiations are still ongoing.
Jake Westbrook- Contract negotiations are still ongoing.

Now, considering Shapiro has a mandate to shelf contract talks at the end of camp and hold off until the offseason UNLESS they feel they have momentum and are close to a deal.....this is encouraging news for Hafner and Westbrook. I'm not holding my breath, but to keep contract talks going through the start of the season is a clear sign they are close on something with them (Hafner they for sure are, but who knows about Westbrook).

[DGeneral]

So nice to hear again that Wedge's status will not be reviewed until after the season. That sends a very clear message to Wedge that he is on the hook to produce this year or face the consequences.

The hiring of Showalter as a contingency for another Wedge tank job was a good move also. Showalter will be jockying for position if Wedge delivers his typical tank job early.

Look for Shapiro to finally drop the Hammer on Wedge once and for all.

I'll believe the Hafner and Westbrook extension when I see the news conference.

[Mr. MacPhisto]

I think holding off on CC is a wise bet. Shapiro is probably betting like many baseball analysts are that the market may dip somewhat next year. If the highly priced guys falter this year then it could have a negative impact - and many think the new CBA and TV money made the market jump. If the market does dip then the Tribe could pay less for CC in the spring of next year than they would now. You don't have the luxury of doing that with Westbrook if you want to keep him and I think Hafner's price is limited due to him not really being able to play a position consistently. Ortiz being locked up in Boston also knocks out one big $$$ team from the bidding.