Report: Brewers willing to go near $100 million to re-sign Zack Greinke - MLB

The ever familiar “person familiar with their thinking” told Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com that the Brewers are willing to go “close to $100 million over five years” to re-sign Zack Greinke, but that they’re not optimistic about getting an extension done.

Part of the reason the Brewers are pessimistic is simply that Greinke is only three months away from being able to field bids from everyone.

“I can’t get into what the offers are,” GM Doug Melvin told Heyman, “but players at that level who get this close to free agency do tend to test the market.”

Matt Cain, in the same situation as Greinke, got what amounted to being a five-year, $112.5 million extension from the Giants in April ($21 million per year for five years, plus a $7.5 million buyout of a $21 million option in 2018).

Greinke doesn’t necessarily deserve as much as Cain, but as long as he finishes the season healthy, it’s hard to imagine he won’t get it. There’s going to be plenty of teams wanting pitching and only two elite arms available in Cole Hamels and Greinke.

Perhaps Greinke is in a bit different of a situation than Hamels, in that his personality and aversion to the spotlight could cause both he to shy away from the large markets and for the New York and Los Angeles teams to shy away from him. Milwaukee seems the perfect situation for him, particularly given that he’s 15-0 in his home starts since joining the Brewers.

Still, if the Milwaukee’s offer comes up $20 million-$30 million short, it’s going to be tough to stay. The Brewers need him more than he needs them.

CARSON CITY, Nev. — The Nevada Senate adjourned Thursday without voting on a financing bill for a proposed $1.5 billion Las Vegas Strip stadium for the Oakland Athletics, extending the special legislative session into the next week amid negotiations over whether to contribute $380 million in public funding to the project.

The measure can still be amended by lawmakers, and if it passes the Senate it would still need approval from the Assembly before going to the desk of Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, who has expressed support for it. Both the state Senate and Assembly are adjourned until Monday.

In a hearing that began Wednesday and stretched into the early morning hours Thursday, lawmakers peppered tourism officials and a representative from a firm partnering with the ball club with questions about the feasibility and benefits of financing such a deal.

Public funds for the stadium would mainly come from $180 million in transferable tax credits and $120 million in county bonds. Backers have pledged that the creation of a special tax district around the proposed stadium would generate enough money to pay off those bonds and interest. The plan would not directly raise taxes.

The A’s would not owe property taxes for the publicly owned stadium. Clark County, which includes Las Vegas, would also contribute $25 million in credit toward infrastructure costs.

A’s representatives and some tourism officials say a deal would further grow Las Vegas’ developing sports scene and act as an economic engine, but a growing chorus of economists and some lawmakers warn that the project would bring minimal benefits for the hefty public price tag.