Kuroda Only Wants 3

It's been a while since we've had a Kuroda update, almost a week. Last we heard the Mariners had bumped their offer to a 4-year deal, but that is the latest rumor to be disputed. Seattle P-I's John Hickey reports that Kuroda doesn't want any more than three years, citing the desire he might have to finish his career in Japan.

I wouldn't say that the Mariners increased offer was a myth. I think it's entirely possible, especially with some reports speculating that it could take as many of 5-years. I think the Mariners put their 4-year offer on the table, only for Kuroda to realize he didn't want to commit that much.

That is good news for the Mariners, because 4-years is entirely too long guarantee a guy that is such an uncertainty. From what I can gather, the Diamondbacks have an offer of about 3-years/$26-27M, the Dodgers are going with about 3-years/$29-30M and the Mariners are still leading the pack with an approximate 3-years/$30-33M deal on the table. There is reports that Arizona upped their offer, but no specific numbers have come out. The Diamondbacks are a long-shot at this point, anyway.

With all the reports that a Hiroki Kuroda deal could take as much as 4-years/$60M, Mariner fans should be able to take a huge sigh of relief. We should know within the next few days.

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