Jimmy Rollins, a friend of superstar free-agent pitcher CC Sabathia dating back to their upbringing outside Oakland, Calif., and one of the best prognosticators in the game considering his lofty and correct predictions for his own Phillies, didn't hesitate when I asked him where he thought Sabathia would wind up.Wow $160 M is a lot of money, but at this point what other options do we have?"New York, American League,'' Rollins, an Alameda, Calif. product, said. "They've got enough money, and they need him.''
It's becoming the prevailing opinion around baseball that the Vallejo product Sabathia will become a Yankee, though it's too early to tell for sure whether that belief originates from wishful thinking on the part of Sabathia's handlers, the union or fellow players. Sabathia's agent, Scott Parker, didn't return a call, but the general consensus is that Sabathia's people would naturally prefer that their client maximize his take, which would very likely mean he'd go to the Yankees, who will presumably be the high bidder. And as one baseball person remarked, "I've never seen guys leave money on the table.''
Some estimates suggest that Sabathia could receive $160 million as a Yankee but maybe $120 million or so if he insisted on going home (or close to home).
Again, this is more speculation, but at this point in time what else do we have to talk about? Hopefully Rollins is right.
Heyman also mentioned that the although they have no yet expressed interest, the Yankees are intrigued by him.
10 Comments:
Yes, I hope Rollins is right.
Mike
the last sentence has to do with matt holliday u left that out
What sentence?
We should just hope to see if we can get him.
Too much money. Think luxury tax. That's about as much as Moose and Pettitte combined. Is he going to win the same 34 games they did?
Moose is most likely not returning so right now the Yankees have 3 starting pitchers. And there aren't that many great options out there. CC is by far the best option.
They may be overpaying, but at this point it's something I think they have to do.
And with the new stadium they will have all the money in the world, so the luxury tax shouldn't be an issue.
Rollins has been right before, let's hope he's right again
No matter what happens with CC, the Yankees have to pick up at least one pitcher in either free agency or trade. With a rotation of Wang, Joba, (Moose or Pettitte), Hughes, ???, we need help. And Hughes should be forced to fight for his rotation spot. I'm fine with one spot in the rotation going to a prospect. But not two.
i'm not a fan of the yankees paying the luxury tax either, it's precisely the reason that teams like the rays, royals, etc (small market teams) are catching up.
with that said, aside from chamberlain the yankees young starting pitchers just aren't ready yet. our scouts overestimated their readiness and didn't let them "put their time in" in the minors. hughes needs to refine his secondary pitches. when he first came up he had three very good pitches, now he only has the fastball and curveball, never throws the change. kennedy may or may not recover, he's kind of fallen out of favor with alot of the players because of those comments after the anaheim game. while i admire his reluctancy to give into the hitter, he's gotta throw strikes and he's gotta hit the corners. right now he's either issuing too many walks or leaving the ball right down the middle of the plate.
so for 2009, that leaves you with wang and chamberlain for 2009. i believe pettitte will be back and hope mussina will be back, but won't count on it. if you are going to be competitive sabathia is the guy you throw that money at. the draft pick you lose to the brewers you will presumably get back for abreu (if they offer arbitration and he walks). cc is young, a great teammate, and a proven "warrior" on the mound. not to mention a lefty, always valuable at yankee stadium. and so far he hasn't lost anything (unlike santana). he has the build that makes him more likely to survive those accumulated innngs.
aside from that, if you're running out cc, wang, and chamberlain for games 1-3 of a playoff series, championship. pettitte might be the best #4 in baseball (he's still a big game pitcher). that also allows you to bring hughes and kennedy along at an appropriate pace instead of forcing them into the rotation.
o, and brian, please upgrade the infield defense, otherwise it won't make a difference how good your pitching is. here's an idea if you can make it work: damon, kennedy, and miranda for kotchman.
i'm not a fan of the yankees paying the luxury tax either, it's precisely the reason that teams like the rays, royals, etc (small market teams) are catching up.
with that said, aside from chamberlain the yankees young starting pitchers just aren't ready yet. our scouts overestimated their readiness and didn't let them "put their time in" in the minors. hughes needs to refine his secondary pitches. when he first came up he had three very good pitches, now he only has the fastball and curveball, never throws the change. kennedy may or may not recover, he's kind of fallen out of favor with alot of the players because of those comments after the anaheim game. while i admire his reluctancy to give into the hitter, he's gotta throw strikes and he's gotta hit the corners. right now he's either issuing too many walks or leaving the ball right down the middle of the plate.
so for 2009, that leaves you with wang and chamberlain for 2009. i believe pettitte will be back and hope mussina will be back, but won't count on it. if you are going to be competitive sabathia is the guy you throw that money at. the draft pick you lose to the brewers you will presumably get back for abreu (if they offer arbitration and he walks). cc is young, a great teammate, and a proven "warrior" on the mound. not to mention a lefty, always valuable at yankee stadium. and so far he hasn't lost anything (unlike santana). he has the build that makes him more likely to survive those accumulated innngs.
aside from that, if you're running out cc, wang, and chamberlain for games 1-3 of a playoff series, championship. pettitte might be the best #4 in baseball (he's still a big game pitcher). that also allows you to bring hughes and kennedy along at an appropriate pace instead of forcing them into the rotation.
o, and brian, please upgrade the infield defense, otherwise it won't make a difference how good your pitching is. here's an idea if you can make it work: damon, kennedy, and miranda for kotchman.
Post a Comment