MLB PLAYER NEWS

Sandoval seeks at least 6-year deal

The Sports Xchange

November 07, 2014 at 10:40 am.

Sandoval, 28, hit .279 in the regular season with 16 home runs and 73 RBIs. In seven seasons with the Giants, Sandoval has belted 106 homers and driven in 462 runs. Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

Third baseman Pablo Sandoval, who rejected a $15.3 million qualifying offer from the San Francisco Giants, is seeking at least a six-year deal.

Sandoval’s agent, Gustavo Vasquez, told the San Francisco Chronicle he has spoken to a “few teams” since free agency began Tuesday, including the Giants.

“Pablo is 28,” Vasquez said Thursday. “He is still young. Maybe if he was 30 or 31 we could talk about four or five years. But he’s 28. He deserves more than that.”

According to ESPN.com, general manager Brian Sabean has told free agent starting pitchers Jake Peavy and Ryan Vogelsong that the World Series champions need time to try to re-sign Sandoval before turning their attention to the mound or any other position.

Vasquez told the newspaper Sandoval would “sign fast” if presented an offer he likes.

The Giants made a $15.3 million qualifying offer this week that the switch-hitting third baseman won’t accept by Monday’s deadline.

“We’ve engaged, but I’ll leave it at that,” Sabean said Thursday. “We’re three days in, so that’s the best answer I can give.”

Giants CEO Larry Baer said his team’s payroll will go up after San Francisco’s third World Series title in five years and the team wants to keep Sandoval. San Francisco’s payroll was $164.7 million at the end of the regular season, the sixth-highest in the majors.

“We don’t have a solution in house so it would have to come from the outside,” Sabean said. “I’m not going to address anybody at this time other than Pablo; that’s who we’re engaged with. It wouldn’t be fair to the other guys.”

Sandoval batted .279 with 16 homers and 73 RBIs in 157 regular-season games and .366 in the postseason with seven doubles and five RBIs, including four during a seven-game World Series win against the Kansas City Royals.

Sandoval has a career .294 batting average with 106 home runs and 462 RBIs in seven seasons with the Giants. In the postseason, Sandoval has batted .344 with six home runs and 20 RBIs in 39 games.

Sandoval reportedly rejected a three-year, $40 million contract extension offer in March from the Giants. He made $8.25 million this season.