For a brief minute last week it seemed certain that Mike Cameron and Melky Cabrera would switch teams, but Brewers GM Doug Melvin confirmed that the proposed trade with the Yankees has officially died. What happened? Apparently both sides took the "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" mantra a little too far, refusing to follow up discussions that began during the Winter Meetings with a phone call. Melvin told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, "I haven't heard from (Yankees general manager) Brian Cashman, and I haven't called him. Cashman confirmed as much to the New York Post, saying "He hasn't told us, we haven't talked since Vegas.
Pick up the phone, fellas, there's still time to get this deal done! Or ... maybe not. Talks first began to stall when the Yankees asked the Brewers to either pay a portion of Cameron's $10 million salary or take on the remaining $12 million Kei Igawa is owed over the next three years. The Brewers balked, and uless they have a change of heart, this deal will likely stay dead. As a Yankees official told the New York Daily News:
"Maybe he thinks we'll be upset and jump back in," the official said when informed of Melvin's comments. "We didn't think Cameron was worth $10 million - and we still don't. I guess (Melvin) finally got the message."It sounds to me like the Yankees drew a line in the sand. Unless Melvin suddenly feels like subsidizing the Yankees' outfield, this one probably isn't going to happen.
