Hello there! This is a stream update, and I hope that you found it without too much trouble. I'm going to try something new, by which I mean the purpose of this update is to link to something somewhere else, instead of delivering original LL content like usual. Sometimes it's worthwhile to outsource. More accurately, sometimes it's worthwhile to not do what somebody else already did.
Anyhow, what you've already heard is that Justin Upton refused a trade to the Seattle Mariners. Lots of people who get traded to the Mariners would probably shake their heads and say "no", but for Upton, his no carries some weight, as he's got a partial no-trade clause with the Mariners included. The Mariners and Diamondbacks agreed to a blockbuster Upton trade, and Upton so far isn't having it. I say "so far", because this might not be dead. Most of you probably read USS Mariner already, but just in case you don't, read this. That's Dave, talking about how the Mariners might be able to push this through. I'll excerpt a bit:
Right now, Upton is under contract for the next three years, with guaranteed salaries of $9.75 million in 2013, $14.25 million in 2014, and $14.5 million in 2015. The team could potentially offer him a player option for 2016 — likely valued in that same $15 million range — or offer to convert the 2015 portion of his guaranteed years into a player option, allowing him to opt out and become a free agent a year early if he’s not enjoying his time in Seattle.
Go over the whole thing, because it'll take you like three minutes. If you need, subtract those three minutes from time you might've spent answering emails later. Your loved ones and co-workers can wait; you've got Justin Upton information to consume. There's no guarantee that talks here will be revived; it's possible that Upton simply isn't going to get dealt to the Mariners. It's possible the Mariners are done trying. But there's room to go from here, at least in theory. The Mariners could try to change Upton's mind. Upton could change his own mind if a different trade to another team doesn't materialize in the near future. No-trade clauses are strategic, and Upton probably isn't entirely opposed to the idea of playing for the Mariners. It's just not his preference right now, given his contract situation, and given his trading situation. Things change, and among those things could be Upton's thought process.
The hard part was done. The M's and D'Backs agreed on the players. All that's left is clearing the other hard part. Maybe. Maybe not, but, maybe.