NEW YORK -- The Yankees are not waiting until the Winter Meetings to let their interest in Johan Santana be known.
Senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner told the Associated Press on Monday that the Yankees and Twins have started discussions involving the two-time Cy Young Award winner, though he said it was too early to tell if a deal would be reached and did not detail how far talks had progressed.
"I don't want to get into that at this point, as far as what they want, what we're willing to give and all that," Steinbrenner told the AP. "It's preliminary right now."
Santana, who turns 29 in March, will not be a free agent until after the 2008 season, but authorized the Twins to begin contacting other clubs about potential trades after initial talks concerning an extension left the two sides roughly $40 million apart.
Steinbrenner confirmed that the Twins are ready to consider a trade of Santana, who is due to earn $13.25 million this year. The left-hander's appeal to the Yankees is clear: Santana was 15-13 with a 3.33 ERA in 33 games for the Twins this season, walking 52 and striking out 235 in 219 innings.
Yet the Twins seem primed to ensure that any club making a pitch for Santana -- the Mets, Red Sox and Dodgers are all reported to have expressed various degrees of serious interest -- will pay a hefty price.
