Former Milwaukee Brewers ace Ben Sheets was in the process of signing a two-year, incentive-laden contract worth than $10 million with the Texas Rangers when his arm gave out halfway through the paperwork.
Team doctors were called in and Sheets was diagnosed with a torn flexor tendon in his right elbow. The injury is severe enough to require surgery according to Sheets’ agent, Casey Close.
Rangers team president — and still their best pitcher — Nolan Ryan immediately instructed general manager Jon Daniels to withdraw the offer to Sheets, who was 15-9 with a 3.09 ERA last season with the Brewers.
Now the Texas Rangers and the Milwaukee Brewers will discuss who’s going to pay for Sheets’ surgery.
Rangers front office officials say the Brewers should pay because he first tore the tendon in September and wasn’t able to pitch in the playoffs for the team.
Brewers officials say the Rangers should pay because he hurt himself signing a contract with them, and because the Brewers are going to cash in a favor with “former owner” and now baseball commissioner Bud Selig to get out of spending any more money on the oft-injured pitcher.
