The Phillies and Chase Utley continue to work towards an extension, reports CBS Sports' Jon Heyman. The price, if correct, is surprisingly reasonable:
Leading up to the trade deadline, the Phillies have been telling teams Utley is unavailable as they aim to lock him up on the multiyear deal. People familiar with the negotiations suggest the offers were modeled after Carlos Beltran's $13 million a year deal with the Cardinals, though Beltran's is a straight two-year deal.
I always thought the Beltran deal was a nice value, though one could argue that he has played better than the $13 million a year he is getting. Considering that Utley makes $15 million this year, the number shows that Utley could be willing to take a little less to stay with the Phillies.
Of course, it's entirely possible that Utley, who averaged 101 games over the last three years, could end up playing less second base than Cesar Hernandez. But this contract should not be so prohibitive to the Phillies to do other things, so I like it.
