Ted Lilly ALMOST Signs with Giants; Sabean Reads Fine Print

May 25, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Ted Lilly (29) during the game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Let’s see if you can follow all this news / non-news from today. First, Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish tweeted that the Giants had signed veteran left handed pitcher, who was just released from the Dodgers on Aug 2nd, to a minor league deal.

Source: #SFGiants sign Ted Lilly to minor league deal.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 6, 2013

As the first bit of news came through, my thoughts were simply, cheap pitcher in case Vogelsong doesn’t really have it together. I also thought he could give some rest to Matt Cain and Madison Bumgarner toward the end of the season. It was a portion of league minimum and the Dodgers still owed him money. Having the Dodgers pay someone, even someone as, um, not great as Ted Lilly, to pitch for the Giants didn’t seem like a bad idea to me if he could work from the bullpen, or spot start.

Then there was this news:

Source: #SFGiants sign Ted Lilly to a split contract and he expects to join big league club this month. Will start tonight for AAA Fresno
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 6, 2013

So, he was supposed to start in Fresno, and wanted a split contract, meaning that the Giants had to guarantee to call him up by a certain date. That seemed a little less great to me, especially if he’s a disaster even in Fresno.

Then we find out the deal wasn’t exactly done yet.

Source clarifies, saying Lilly is still trying to work out final details with #SFGiants is may not make the start tonight
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 6, 2013

And finally, it looks like both sides couldn’t agree to a call-up date.

Source: #SFGiants and Ted Lilly could not agree on callup date, so deal is off. Doubtful that he will end up with them now.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 6, 2013

Source on Ted Lilly and #SFGiants deal falling through: "At this time there is no deal. May change, but doubtful". Sides were very close.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 6, 2013

Andddddd, there may have been medical concerns.

While sources indicate Lilly is healthy, speculation is that the #SFGiants may have raised medical concerns. Deal off.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) August 6, 2013

In the end, it looks like it’s definitely NOT happening, but who knows. Maybe he can start in Fresno tonight, and then finish in San Francisco in the 9th tonight. At any rate, nothing lost, nothing gained. Giants fans can resume what you were doing and know that nothing major was lost, and on the flip side, nothing major will be gained even if he does end up signing.

Still, Lilly and the Dodgers, messing with my feelings.

Who else is rocked by this Ted Lilly emotional rollercoaster? #GiantsTalk
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) August 6, 2013

Seems to me Brian Sabean got drunk and almost hooked up with that, sorta okay, older, girl that you know it won’t last with. Not the worst thing ever, but certainly not to be missed either way.

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