No contract extension in sight as Royals’ James Shields prepares for Opening Day, his deadlineMarch 4
BY ANDY MCCULLOUGH
The Kansas City Star

SURPRISE, Ariz. — In 27 days, James Shields intends to stand atop the mound at Comerica Park in Detroit as the Royals Opening Day starter for the second year in a row. He will also cross a self-imposed deadline for any contract negotiations. Shields has said repeatedly he does not want to discuss any extension once the season begins.


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Kansas City Royals pitcher James Shields during Friday's Cactus League baseball game against the Texas Rangers in Surprise, Ariz.


Here in the first week of March, the Royals have yet to engage with Shields’ representatives regarding a extension, according to people familiar with the situation. The team has yet to give any indication they plan to do so. Team officials refuse to rule out attempting to retain Shields, but it appears that attempt will not occur until the winter, when rival executives expect him to fetch a contract in excess of $100 million.

From a public relations standpoint, the Royals set themselves up for criticism if Shields walks. The organization traded a sizable package of prospects, headlined by 2013 American League Rookie of the Year Wil Myers, to Tampa Bay for only two seasons of Shields.

But in reality, a preseason pursuit of Shields would require a sizable financial commitment – perhaps one greater than what Shields will seek this winter on the open market. The cost to keep Shields off the market probably exceeds the Royals’ comfort zone.

When Robinson Cano negotiated with the Yankees last May, his agents sought a package worth more than $300 million, in part because free-agency is viewed as a privilege few players in the game achieve. In order to give up that opportunity, the team needed to pay more. The Yankees declined to meet his price. During the subsequent winter, Cano agreed to a $240 million deal with Seattle.

Shields and members of his camp have denied a report saying he seeks a contract similar to Zack Greinke’s six-year, $147 million deal with the Dodgers. But Shields compares favorably with Greinke, and his lone competition at the top of the market is Max Scherzer, Detroit’s reigning American League Cy Young Award winner.

At 32, Shields appears financially secure. The Royals paid him $13.5 million for 2014, the final year of a lengthy deal he signed with the Rays. There is little reason to settle for below market value.

“I don’t know why he’d take any short-term, hometown deal,” one rival American League executive said. “These are his golden years.”