Roy Oswalt Rumors: Oswalt Still Evaluating his Options

Just when we thought we’d have some sort of resolution to the whole Roy Oswalt free agency situation, we discovered an end isn’t even close to being in sight.  Instead of announcing an agreement with the Cardinals, Rangers or Red Sox yesterday, Oswalt declared that he’s going all Roger Clemens and Pedro Martinez on us.

Rather than start the season with a team like just about every other player at the major league level, Oswalt is opting to remain a free agent in hopes of signing midseason.  Oswalt and his representation are holding out for a deal that is to their liking, both monetarily and geographically.  It’s also been made clear that Oswalt is only interested in pitching for a contender.

Yesterday afternoon Oswalt’s agent Bob Garber announced that “Roy has decided to continue to evaluate his options”.  Garber added that his client is in great health and will look to continue to remain in top form.  While he hasn’t reached an agreement yet, Garber said that Oswalt “has every intention of pitching for a contending club at some point this season”.

The logic here is that once the summer rolls around and teams are dealing with injuries and ineffectiveness, demand for Oswalt figures to increase.  This is certainly not the normal way of doing business, but Oswalt can get away with making such an announcement based on his track record.

While there’s nothing stopping Oswalt from deciding on this course of action, it will be interesting to see if the right-hander is able to have the successful half-season he’s hoping for.

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