Originally Posted by
clvclv
The problem here is that we have no clue whether anything like that has ever been offered. If it has and Freeman hasn't accepted, AA is absolutely doing the right thing. You're placing the responsibility for deciding terms on Freeman, and that's simply not his job. AA has to offer something for the player to consider, not the other way around. The only things we've heard from either side is...
1.) Alex says "we want Freddie to be here for his entire career".
2.) Freddie says he wants to be here for his entire career.
3.) Freddie told the press there hadn't been any offer at the time he said he didn't want to talk during the season.
#3 absolutely may be a negotiating ploy on his part, but AA has said nothing to make anyone think that's the case. If the series of extensions has been offered, Alex is an idiot for not letting something like that leak - he doesn't have to let the terms get out, but by not saying that has been an option for Freddie the entire time he has completely ceded the high ground while Freeman has entrenched himself deeper and deeper with his return to MVP level form and the Charlie/Tatis clips and pictures in front of everyone on a daily basis.
If Alex actually offered a series of 2-3 year extensions and was willing to play chicken because he thought Freeman's performance or PR would eventually drive the number where he wanted it to go, he's losing that game badly - to the point that he's now backed into the corner of having to try to paint Freddie as "just another greedy ballplayer who wasn't willing to do what it took to help the team".