As SB Nation New York posted yesterday, it's now just a waiting game for the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers, who are each pursuing prized lefty Cliff Lee.
Sporting News' Chris Bahr believes that Lee's hesitation might be a bad sign for the Yankees:
"The Yankees reportedly have a seven-year offer worth approximately $160 million on the table for Lee. That offer is believed to be more lucrative in terms of dollars and years than the Rangers' offer, which was made in person to Lee in his hometown of Little Rock, Ark., on Thursday."
Sports Illustrated's baseball insider Jon Heyman, who seems to be the go-to guy for information related to the bidding war, thinks the Yankees have the upper hand.
"New York Yankees have a big advantage over the Texas Rangers in terms of total guaranteed dollars offered and also have one more guaranteed year currently on the table," wrote Heyman on Saturday morning.
"The dollar figure attached to the Yankees' seven-year bid isn't known, but since their original six-year bid was for about $138 million, it would be surprising if their seven-year offer was for anything less than $150 million; it quite possibly could approach the record seven-year, $161 million contract they bestowed on CC Sabathia."
An interesting tidbit is the misconception that Lee can make more money with the Rangers because of state-income taxes.
"Beyond the fact that Lee is an Arkansas resident," writes Heyman. "He'd only be responsible for New York taxes for 81 home dates each year. Over the course of a seven-year contract, the tax differential would be expected to be no more than $1 to $2 million."