The Indians finally got back to starter Justin Masterson about his contract offers, but the sides were unable to find a middle ground in negotiations for the impending free agent.
According to CBSSports.com Baseball Insider Jon Heyman, the Indians responded to Masterson's offers with one of their own, but the numbers were hardly close enough to get the deal done. According to the report, the two sides ended up around $3 million per year apart when negotiations broke off.
Masterson offered the Indians a pair of deals, believed to be for two and three years at around $17 million per season. The team responded with a counter offer worth $14 million per for two years, with a team option at the end. The Indians cited young players nearing arbitration as the reason they could not meet Masterson's requests.
"We tried to work with them and be flexible, and we tried to look at the situation given Justin's desire to play for the Indians," Masterson's agent Randy Rowley said. "We were happy to do something that made sense. We tried to be flexible and sensitive."
Masterson is set to make $9.6 million in his final year before free agency. He posted a 3.45 ERA and made his first All-Star game a year ago, and has posted an ERA below 3.50 in two of his last three years.