The “Jeter wants $150 million” walkback has begun

That didn’t take long: Jim Baumbach of Newsday is walking back the notion that Jeter really asked for $150 million. He tweets:

Person familiar with Yankees-Jeter negotiations says Jeter camp is not asking for reported $150 million over six years. It’s less than that.

He didn’t say if it’s less money or fewer years or both.

While keeping in mind the notion that negotiations are fluid things and that people leaking things always have agendas and counter-agendas when it comes to this sort of thing, I am not really all that inclined to believe that Bill Madden’s report of the demand was wrong. Thew incentives for someone in the “Jeter/Close camp” to make that up are low. The incentives for them to deny that now -- after a few hours of mockery over the reported demand -- are super high.

My guess: Madden’s information related to a prior demand, since laughed out of the room by the Yankees, and now the Baumbach’s source is accurate, technically speaking. If that were the case it doesn’t change the insanity of the demand, and Baumbach’s report doesn’t constitute a denial.

But hey, thank goodness there’s a push on this winter to keep free agent negotiations out of the press!