At SoxFest yesterday, there was an amusing back-and-forth between Kenny Williams and Mark Buehrle. While they were in the same room, they exchanged barbs through reporters.
Buehrle feels Williams said directly that the southpaw would not be back with the Sox in ’08. It seems that Williams alluded to that in a more roundabout way, however. Bottom line: both parties seem to agree that Buehrle will price himself out of the White Sox’s range.
The lefty needs a major bounce-back season to snag the huge deal he seemed in line for before 2006. He posted a 6.44 ERA in the second half of ’06. He’ll probably give the Cardinals a decent hometown discount and eventually work something out with Walt Jocketty. Still, would he take less than five years and $60MM?
The Cardinals could easily be Buehrle’s third team, as Williams might want to exchange Buehrle for some nice prospects before 2007 ends. A lot will depend on the development of young pitchers and the team’s place in the standings.
