Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl

Derek Jeter’s agent Friday denied a New York newspaper report that his client is seeking a six-year deal for about $25 million annually to return to the Yankees.

“The recently rumored terms of our contract proposal are simply inaccurate,” agent Casey Close said in an e-mail to ESPN.com. Close declined to provide further details on the state of his negotiations with the club.

The New York Daily News, citing “sources close to the Jeter/Close camp,” said Jeter’s starting point in negotiations was six years and $150 million, and added that the All-Star shortstop hasn’t budged from that $25 million a year figure.

A subsequent Newsday report characterized the six-year, $150 million report as excessively high, but provided no specifics on what Jeter is asking for in talks.

Jeter’s talks with the Yankees took several twists and turns before the Thanksgiving holiday. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said Tuesday that the team has made a “fair and appropriate” offer, and suggested it was time for Jeter to explore his value on the open market.

“We understand his contributions to the franchise and our offer has taken them into account,” Cashman told ESPNNewYork.com earlier this week. “We’ve encouraged him to test the market and see if there’s something he would prefer other than this. If he can, fine. That’s the way it works.”

Several outlets have reported that the Yankees have made a three-year, $45 million offer to Jeter, whose .270 batting average and .340 on-base percentage this season were both career lows. Jeter did, however, score 111 runs, make the American League All-Star team and win his fifth career Gold Glove in balloting by the league’s managers and coaches.

On Tuesday, the Yankees declined to offer Jeter salary arbitration. If the Yankees had offered arbitration, Jeter would have had the option to return to New York in 2011 for a one-year salary likely in excess of $20 million. Since the Yankees declined to make the offer, they won’t be entitled to draft pick compensation if Jeter signs with another club as a free agent.

The mood in talks appeared to grow testier after Close was quoted in Sunday’s Daily News as saying he was “baffled” by the team’s negotiating strategy.

“I was certainly surprised,” Cashman said Tuesday in regards to Close’s use of the word “baffled.” “There’s nothing baffling about our position. We have actually gone directly face-to-face with Casey and Derek and been very honest and direct. They know exactly where we sit.”

Jerry Crasnick