St. Louis tendered a formal offer to the free-agent left fielder on Friday, according to the St. Louis Post Dispatch. The terms of the offer are unknown, but the Cardinals hope to receive a response from agent Scott Boras early next week.
A source familiar with the negotiations told the newspaper that the terms of the contract do not exceed $18 million per year, which marks the average value Holliday rejected in 2008. Boras expects his client’s value to be worth about eight years and $180 million, which is what Mark Teixeira signed for in in 2008.
St. Louis’ offer — which was made face-to-face with Boras during the winter meetings in Indianapolis — marked the Cardinals’ first official attempt to retain Holliday in what has become a public back-and-forth struggle between the team and Boras.
