6:02pm: Newsday's Ken Davidoff reports that the Yankees met with Lackey today and appear unlikely to become bona fide suitors for him.
3:14am: Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times writes that the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are still in negotiations with John Lackey, but that it's "highly doubtful" they'll go as high as six years or $100MM for the right-hander.
GM Tony Reagins didn't specify a limit for the number of years the team could offer Lackey but said "there is a point where it doesn't make sense" to tie up too much long-term money.
News has been slow on the Lackey front this week, but this isn't the first time we've heard that a team is reluctant to offer the 31-year-old a long-term contract: The New York Post's Joel Sherman reported Monday that the Mets would prefer not to exceed four years. As Mike Salk of ESPN Radio in Seattle points out, Lackey's eventual signing could act as a catalyst for the rest of the starting pitching market.
