Countdown to Clearwater: Negotiation time for Hamels

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The Phillies begin spring training Sunday in Clearwater, Fla. In the final days before camp begins, we take a daily look at some of the issues the team will encounter in camp.MondayChase Utley TuesdayRyan Howard and first base WednesdayBullpen ThursdayStarting rotationFridayCole HamelsSaturdayOffenseSundayOutfield

Spring training has often been eventful for Cole Hamels and this year should be no different.

The 28-year-old lefthander will be eligible for free agency in November, but the Phillies would like to lock him up to a contract extension before then.

Spring training could be a pivotal time in the negotiations, which have been quietly going on for some time. Hamels agent, John Boggs, is expected to visit with team officials in Florida at some point during camp. He is already on record as saying that Hamels is one of the elite pitchers in the game and should be paid accordingly. That probably means a long-term deal in the neighborhood of 20 million per season (see story).

Hamels, who avoided salary arbitration with a one-year, 15 million agreement last month, shunned most questions about free agency last season, though he did say how much he liked pitching in Philadelphia and expressed a desire to stay with the Phillies for many years. Hamels is a San Diego native and there is a perception that he longs to pitch on the West Coast. That is not necessarily true, however. Last summer, Hamels said he was glad that his hometown Padres did not draft him in 2002 because he loved the passion that comes with pitching on the East Coast.

Hamels will hold a news conference Monday in Clearwater. It is expected to be the only time this spring that he talks about his future with the club as he intends to focus on preparing for the coming season. A couple of questions that Hamels will hear Monday:

Do you want to test the free-agent market?

Will you set a deadline in negotiations?

Hamels battled lower back problems early in his career. He missed a short period of time with some shoulder inflammation last season and had loose bodies surgically removed from his elbow after the season. Health is an issue with all players, particularly Hamels, so it will be interesting to see if he opts for security early in the negotiating process or pitches out the season and tests the market.

Hamels is coming off a career-best season in which he went 14-9 with a 2.79 ERA in 32 games (31 starts). He finished fifth in the NL in Cy Young voting behind Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers, teammates Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, and Arizonas Ian Kennedy.

Spring training drama is nothing new to Hamels. Less than two years out of high school in 2004, he burst upon the scene by striking out Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Tony Clark in a start against the Yankees in Tampa. A year later, he had his invite to big-league camp taken away after suffering a broken hand in a fight outside a Clearwater bar. He spent that spring rehabbing the injury in minor-league camp. In 2009, Hamels was on his way to being the Phils opening day starter before a bout of elbow inflammation delayed his season. The next spring, he was a focus as he successfully added a cutter to his pitch repertoire and looked to rebound from a trying 2009 season.

E-mail Jim Salisbury at jsalisbury@comcastsportsnet.com

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