FRIDAY, 4:45pm: Monfort confirmed that the team has offered Gonzalez a seven-year extension, but questioned the salary number reported by the Post. "I'm not sure where $100MM came from," Monfort told Wilmer Reina at the Venezuelan paper La Verdad (link in Spanish). "It's true that our organization has talked with his agent about an agreement of seven years, but not with those numbers." – Nick Collias
THURSDAY, 6:18am: Rockies owner Dick Monfort has already committed over $100MM this winter to one of the cornerstones of his franchise, Troy Tulowitzki. Now, Monfort tells Troy Renck of the Denver Post that he'd be open to a six- or seven-year extension, potentially in the neighborhood of $100MM, for another of Colorado's stars: Carlos Gonzalez.
"I am hopeful, yes, that we can get something done," Monfort said. "Why? Well, I haven't talked directly with Carlos, but I know he likes it here. And as a player, I would like to know that Troy Tulowitzki is going to be hitting behind me forever. And I would like that I don't have to play center field every day because we already have a gazelle out there (in Dexter Fowler)."
Monfort acknowledged that, considering Gonzalez's representation, getting a deal done wouldn't be easy. But according to Scott Boras, if the young outfielder is interesting in pursuing an extension and feels that it's "economically suitable for him," he would be open to the idea.
According to GM Dan O'Dowd, any extension negotiations won't continue into spring training, so if the two sides intend to work out anything this winter, talks will need to pick up in the coming weeks. While there were rumors of an informal long-term offer for CarGo, discussions don't appear to have become serious yet. With Gonzalez still a year away from arbitration eligibility and under team control through 2014, the club likely won't be in any rush.
