Last month, the Phillies and Cuban right-hander Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez reportedly reached an agreement on a six-year, $48MM contract that contained an $11MM option for a seventh season. However, Philadelphia has yet to announce that a deal has been finalized, and MLB.com's Todd Zolecki writes that the deal may not end up going through at all.
The two sides have "hit a snag" in recent weeks, writes Zolecki, which would explain the silence from the Phillies (a previous report had indicated they were simply waiting for Gonzalez to get visa approval before making an announcement). GM Ruben Amaro Jr. would not comment on the situation when asked by Zolecki prior to last night's game against the Cubs.
After the agreement was announced, reports surfaced that some clubs had been wary of problems in Gonzalez's elbow. Zolecki reports that Gonzalez has had bone spurs removed within the past two years but is said to have recovered from that procedure. If the agreement were to fall through, it would drastically change the Phillies' outlook for 2014 and perhaps even 2013, as he was expected to be in the Majors next season and possibly even this year.
The Phillies have appeared to be more active on the international market than in recent years between the Gonzalez agreement and their signing of German outfield prospect Julsan Kamara. They are also said to be the favorites to sign Dominican third baseman Luis Encarnacion this Friday when he turns 16. Baseball America ranked Encarnacion as the No. 4 international free agent in this year's class, while MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez ranked him 12th.
