The standings change and so does the economy, inside and outside the sports world. But the character of baseball’s signature franchise never does. The Yankees, who missed the playoffs this season, still expect to win the World Series and are still spending big to try. They have snatched up one of the best pitchers in MLB today, CC Sabathia. After he helped Milwaukee capture the National League wild card last season the Yankees saw the potential in this guy and definitely did not want to miss out. Pending a physical, C.C. Sabathia will sign a deal to be the centerpiece of Yankees' rotation weeks after the team's initial offer.
The Yankees jolted Major League Baseball on Wednesday as they neared completion of a record seven-year, $161 million deal with the ace left-hander C. C. Sabathia. They have also told A. J. Burnett that they would offer him a guaranteed five-year contract, perhaps for $16 million a season. As some teams scale back, fearing a sharp drop in revenue from sponsorships and ticket sales, the Yankees are the most aggressive shoppers at baseball’s winter meetings. “That’s them, that’s the Yankees, that’s how we look at it,” said Dan O’Dowd, the general manager of the Colorado Rockies. “They operate in a world by themselves, and we understand that. It doesn’t really affect the market because it’s them.” Sabathia will front a 2009 rotation that also includes Chien-Ming Wang and Joba Chamberlain.
But the Yankees are also eager to sign two more starting pitchers from a group comprising Burnett, Derek Lowe, Andy Pettitte and Ben Sheets. They could move quickly on Sheets, if his medical records come back clean. And if Burnett and Sheets join Sabathia as Yankees, the team would pull its one-year, $10 million offer to Pettitte. Several factors allow the Yankees to keep spending amid the crumbling economy. They are moving to a new Yankee Stadium in April, operate their own cable network (YES it's true) and have shed more than $80 million with the expired contracts of Jason Giambi, Bobby Abreu, Mike Mussina and others. The Yankees’ payroll exceeded $209 million last season, and while it will probably be lower this year, it will still be the highest in the majors by a substantial amount. “We’re having a lot of money come off our payroll, and we’re going to be aggressive on players we think could be terrific Yankees and be key components for us for 2009 and beyond,” General Manager Brian Cashman said. “It’s as simple as that.” The Yankees must complete the details of Sabathia’s deal, like how much he will make each season, and Sabathia who is 6 feet 7 inches and 311 pounds must pass an in depth physical. The deal, which includes an opt-out clause after 
three seasons, would push Sabathia past Johan Santana for the largest guaranteed contract ever given to a pitcher. The Mets gave Santana a six-year, $137.5 million deal in February, after the Yankees passed on a chance to acquire him from the Minnesota Twins. They did not want to give up a package of prospects in addition to arranging a lavish contract, and resisted a Sabathia trade this summer for the same reason. Milwaukee acquired Sabathia from the Cleveland Indians instead, and he went 11-2 with a 1.65 earned run average down the stretch. That performance persuaded the Yankees that Sabathia must be the centerpiece of their off-season plans. With Sabathia costing only dollars now — and a compensatory draft choice — the Yankees pounced. They offered six years and $140 million on Nov. 14, the first day they were allowed to negotiate, trying to overwhelm Sabathia, a California native who wanted to pitch in his home state. Though he also met with the Boston Red Sox, Sabathia had only one other offer, from the Brewers for five years and $100 million, and none of the five teams in California made a serious pitch nor were they aggressive enough to go after him.
Cashman met with Sabathia on Sunday and Monday, telling Sabathia’s agents that he would welcome the chance to visit Sabathia’s home in Vallejo, Calif. The agent Greg Genske called Tuesday and invited Cashman, who flew to Oakland with a second Sabathia agent, Brian Peters. “When the opportunity was given,” Cashman said, “I knew that’s a flight I had to take.” Cashman met Sabathia and his wife, Amber, at their home, telling him he recognized the house from an episode of “MTV Cribs.” They spoke for two hours in Sabathia’s living room with Sabathia’s children toddling in and out before Cashman raised the offer $20 million more in a conversation with Peters. The Brewers, meanwhile, had been considering adding a sixth year to their offer in an effort to keep the player who led them to their first playoff appearance in 26 seasons. But at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Genske called Brewers General Manager Doug Melvin and told him Sabathia would not return to Milwaukee. “I guess the Yankees had to pay a surcharge for Sabathia playing in New York,” Melvin told two reporters, jokingly. “I was down at the tables last night trying to win enough money to get us back in the game. I congratulated Brian. He got himself a great pitcher.” The Yankees tried hard to convince Sabathia that he can thrive in New York. At the Sunday meeting, Cashman and Manager Joe Girardi took along the Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson, who conquered New York in the 1970s after starring in Oakland.
The Yankees jolted Major League Baseball on Wednesday as they neared completion of a record seven-year, $161 million deal with the ace left-hander C. C. Sabathia. They have also told A. J. Burnett that they would offer him a guaranteed five-year contract, perhaps for $16 million a season. As some teams scale back, fearing a sharp drop in revenue from sponsorships and ticket sales, the Yankees are the most aggressive shoppers at baseball’s winter meetings. “That’s them, that’s the Yankees, that’s how we look at it,” said Dan O’Dowd, the general manager of the Colorado Rockies. “They operate in a world by themselves, and we understand that. It doesn’t really affect the market because it’s them.” Sabathia will front a 2009 rotation that also includes Chien-Ming Wang and Joba Chamberlain.
But the Yankees are also eager to sign two more starting pitchers from a group comprising Burnett, Derek Lowe, Andy Pettitte and Ben Sheets. They could move quickly on Sheets, if his medical records come back clean. And if Burnett and Sheets join Sabathia as Yankees, the team would pull its one-year, $10 million offer to Pettitte. Several factors allow the Yankees to keep spending amid the crumbling economy. They are moving to a new Yankee Stadium in April, operate their own cable network (YES it's true) and have shed more than $80 million with the expired contracts of Jason Giambi, Bobby Abreu, Mike Mussina and others. The Yankees’ payroll exceeded $209 million last season, and while it will probably be lower this year, it will still be the highest in the majors by a substantial amount. “We’re having a lot of money come off our payroll, and we’re going to be aggressive on players we think could be terrific Yankees and be key components for us for 2009 and beyond,” General Manager Brian Cashman said. “It’s as simple as that.” The Yankees must complete the details of Sabathia’s deal, like how much he will make each season, and Sabathia who is 6 feet 7 inches and 311 pounds must pass an in depth physical. The deal, which includes an opt-out clause after 
three seasons, would push Sabathia past Johan Santana for the largest guaranteed contract ever given to a pitcher. The Mets gave Santana a six-year, $137.5 million deal in February, after the Yankees passed on a chance to acquire him from the Minnesota Twins. They did not want to give up a package of prospects in addition to arranging a lavish contract, and resisted a Sabathia trade this summer for the same reason. Milwaukee acquired Sabathia from the Cleveland Indians instead, and he went 11-2 with a 1.65 earned run average down the stretch. That performance persuaded the Yankees that Sabathia must be the centerpiece of their off-season plans. With Sabathia costing only dollars now — and a compensatory draft choice — the Yankees pounced. They offered six years and $140 million on Nov. 14, the first day they were allowed to negotiate, trying to overwhelm Sabathia, a California native who wanted to pitch in his home state. Though he also met with the Boston Red Sox, Sabathia had only one other offer, from the Brewers for five years and $100 million, and none of the five teams in California made a serious pitch nor were they aggressive enough to go after him.
Cashman met with Sabathia on Sunday and Monday, telling Sabathia’s agents that he would welcome the chance to visit Sabathia’s home in Vallejo, Calif. The agent Greg Genske called Tuesday and invited Cashman, who flew to Oakland with a second Sabathia agent, Brian Peters. “When the opportunity was given,” Cashman said, “I knew that’s a flight I had to take.” Cashman met Sabathia and his wife, Amber, at their home, telling him he recognized the house from an episode of “MTV Cribs.” They spoke for two hours in Sabathia’s living room with Sabathia’s children toddling in and out before Cashman raised the offer $20 million more in a conversation with Peters. The Brewers, meanwhile, had been considering adding a sixth year to their offer in an effort to keep the player who led them to their first playoff appearance in 26 seasons. But at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Genske called Brewers General Manager Doug Melvin and told him Sabathia would not return to Milwaukee. “I guess the Yankees had to pay a surcharge for Sabathia playing in New York,” Melvin told two reporters, jokingly. “I was down at the tables last night trying to win enough money to get us back in the game. I congratulated Brian. He got himself a great pitcher.” The Yankees tried hard to convince Sabathia that he can thrive in New York. At the Sunday meeting, Cashman and Manager Joe Girardi took along the Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson, who conquered New York in the 1970s after starring in Oakland. 
Shortstop Derek Jeter, the team captain, called Sabathia last month. Jeter, who was here for a news conference about the World Baseball Classic, hinted that Sabathia had asked about places to live outside Manhattan. “There’s a lot of different places you can live,” Jeter said. “You don’t have to live in the city.” Left fielder Johnny Damon had dinner with Sabathia early this season in Cleveland, and Damon said their wives have kept in touch. Sabathia was 6-8 for the Indians last season before his trade to Milwaukee on July 7, and Damon sensed he was pressing. “I think the first half of the season, he was thinking, ‘Oh, I’m a free agent, but I love it in Cleveland,’” Damon said in a telephone interview. “And then when he got traded, he was a man on a mission. He started to understand the business side of the game, and this is where it got him.” The Yankees badly needed an ace last season, especially after their best starter, Wang, injured his foot in June and did not pitch again. As their own playoff hopes faded, the players noticed. Sabathia is already friends with Jeter, and Sabathia is known for being a great teammate who tends to draw others together. When there was a team cookout in Cleveland, it would be at the Sabathias' house, invariably, with Sabathia's mother dishing out the food. Sabathia will make the atmosphere in the Yankees' clubhouse better, and he will make the team better. Whether that will be good enough in New York remains to be seen.
There's nothing more ominous for all the clubs here operating in this economy than the Yankees being desperate for pitching," said one agent Sunday night. "They don't seem to care what it costs them to get it." The Yankees said at the end of last season that they wanted to focus on acquiring better pitching for the 2009 season and it definitely looks like they are doing a good job at it so far. It will be interesting to see how much money they are willing to spend on top quality pitching. We will all have to stay tuned to see what deals they make next. Personally as a Yankee follower myself I am excited to see what the new year will bring with this ball club.
One thing is certain, once CC Sabathia joins the Yankees, he will receive at least two standing ovations before he throws the first pitch ever at the new Yankee Stadium. The first will come when he walks out to the bullpen for pregame warm-ups, the second when he steps out of the dugout to take the field.
After that, the Yankees and their fans will expect nothing less than greatness. If he delivers anything less than a championship, if he doesn't win big in October, he will be deemed a failure. Such is the bargain that's struck when you choose to play in New York.
Sabathia's personal puzzle will be to find a way to block out the external pressure and not allow it to compound the internal pressure that he already places on himself, and that pressure is as large as he is. He has been at his worst in the past when he has pushed himself too much examples include after Bartolo Colon left the Indians and Sabathia wanted to become the ace, and perhaps at the outset of the 2008 season, as he began his free-agent year. The worst thing Sabathia can do is to try harder.
One thing is certain, once CC Sabathia joins the Yankees, he will receive at least two standing ovations before he throws the first pitch ever at the new Yankee Stadium. The first will come when he walks out to the bullpen for pregame warm-ups, the second when he steps out of the dugout to take the field.
After that, the Yankees and their fans will expect nothing less than greatness. If he delivers anything less than a championship, if he doesn't win big in October, he will be deemed a failure. Such is the bargain that's struck when you choose to play in New York.
Sabathia's personal puzzle will be to find a way to block out the external pressure and not allow it to compound the internal pressure that he already places on himself, and that pressure is as large as he is. He has been at his worst in the past when he has pushed himself too much examples include after Bartolo Colon left the Indians and Sabathia wanted to become the ace, and perhaps at the outset of the 2008 season, as he began his free-agent year. The worst thing Sabathia can do is to try harder.
But he will be remarkably accountable, owning up to his mistakes quickly and adjusting, and I'd bet that he'll figure out the emotional puzzle and pitch effectively for the Yankees. New York remains a serious player in the bidding for A.J. Burnett, Derek Lowe and Ben Sheets, so Sabathia conceivably could head a rotation that would include Chien-Ming Wang, two of three in the group of Burnett, Lowe and Sheets, and Joba Chamberlain as perhaps the No. 5 starter. Such a rotation would be as good as any in the American League, and maybe even better, depending on just how good Sabathia is.
Sabathia loved his days in Milwaukee and had great fun with the Brewers, and he loved that the Brewers were invested in him and badly needed him to perform. The Yankees' personality will be different for him. The clubhouse will be different. In the meeting that Sabathia had with the Yankees, a question was asked in the room about whether there was an irreparable split between the two most dominant personalities in the room, A-Rod and Derek Jeter, and Yankees general manager Brian Cashman responded by talking about how the two men are just different.Congratulations CC and may your years as a Yankee be great ones and may you rise to any challenges that come your way. I can't wait for the first Yankees game especially against the Boston Red Sox!!
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