Dec
04

Giants may but interested, but Yanks pressing hard for CC

By

Update 10:14 p.m.: I worte this rest of this post this afternoon. Since then, the AP is reporting that the Yankees and CC Sabathia will meet this weekend. It appears that the market is starting to move.

==

Sources sure are saying a lot about CC Sabathia these days, but I’m not buying it. After last night’s Jayson Stark speculation about Sabathia and the Giants, Mark Feinsand’s sources said that the Giants were “considering” Sabathia, but only if he’s willing to accept “an extreme hometown discount.”

I just don’t buy it and neither does Ken Davidoff. To me, this sounds remarkably similar to the reports about the Angels’ supposedly interest in Sabathia that later turned out to be false. It could very well be a ploy by Sabathia’s agents to get more money from the Yanks.

We know the Yanks would be willing to up their offer if another team steps in, and perhaps Greg Genske is attempting a Scott Boras-like tactic. The Giants have major offensive woes, and signing CC would tie up nearly half their payroll in two pitchers. While Sabathia may want to pitch in the Bay Area, he won’t leave at least $30 million on the table, and if the Giants were to make a real offer, that would be the difference.

In an interview today, Giants’ GM Brian Sabean seemed to dance around the Sabathia issue. He knows the Giants can’t compete and dollars, and he knows it wouldn’t make much sense for San Francisco to commit so much to another pitcher. They may, in principle, be interested, but I don’t see a fit here.

Categories : Hot Stove League

145 Comments»

  1. Nady Nation says:

    I’m with Ben, I still see us as the frontrunners for CC. And according to PeteAbe, the recruiting efforts are intensifying…

    http://yankees.lhblogs.com/200.....-sabathia/

  2. pat says:

    man i swear there was a different post here a minute ago

  3. steve (different one) says:

    so, you are the GM of a fairly decent sized market team. you have the ability to pay one pitcher a contract of upwards of $115M and a dominant stud LHer is willing to take a slight discount to play for his “home” team….it’s a dream come true.

    then you wake up and realize you already shot your load on BARRY EFFING ZITO.

  4. Steve says:

    There’s another angle to this. The Braves appear to be willing to go 5 years on Burnett, and the Yanks won’t go that high. So with Plan B looking bad, they’re stepping up their efforts to secure Plan A.

    If they land CC, expect Pettitte to sign next. He doesn’t want to be sitting out there with the Yanks having signed 2 pitchers and really not needing him much anymore.

    • Bruno says:

      I hope AJ getting 5 from ATL means we get Sheets for 2/3.

      • Steve says:

        Me too, both are injury prone. Less years and $$ for a better pitcher.

        I don’t even mind if Sheets misses time. It will gives Aceves/Hughes/IPK a shot at filling in here and there. Whoever succeeds can take Andy’s spot next year.

    • christopher says:

      thethe 5 year braves offer was shot down…it is 4 years with a vesting option which is what the Jays and Yanks are willing to do.

      Something that hasnt been brought up much about the jays and burnett is the value of the canadian dollar which has significantly decreased. therefore, they are paying more to AJ even by offering the same amount as other teams

  5. yankeefan91 (sign c.c asap) says:

    and add this pic wit it

  6. jobatheheat says:

    I have noticed peple telling you your site is acting up. Its either freezing or slow or stuck on some white screen. Just wanted to inform you . Never had any problems till today. Happens a lot trying to go to comments . By the way you guys at RAB do a kick ass job.I respect and apreciate your baseball knowledge and opinions.

  7. jobatheheat says:

    How much do you think we will offer Shets money and years. Big fan for Sheets .just say no to Lowe. Do you think well still make a run for a bat.

    • Mike Pop says:

      Unfortunately I think we only turn to Sheets if Lowe rejects us.. I think Sheets should be ahead of Lowe of who we should target though.

    • Bruno says:

      2/$30 or 3/$40 for Sheets. If we sign CC and another pitcher, plus keep Andy, I think they’d be relatively done for the offseason. I’d be fine with that, allthough I’d love to add Dunn also, and MAYBE a catcher.

      • Mike Pop says:

        What catcher ? Trade Kennedy and D-Rob for Salty ? Would that be smart? He can also play 1st

        • jobatheheat says:

          Trade Kenedy for Salty,Sign me up.

        • christopher says:

          the team already has a weak bench. Carrying 3 catchers is not viable especially if Salty is out of options.

          at least two of the rangers 3 catchers will be there come mid-season or next offseason. Besides the yankees hgave posada that contract with the intent that he would be able to catch until one of the young guys is ready.

          Finally our best hitting prospect is a catcher. Granted he is 2 or 3 years away, but you dont want to clog that position up which is part of the reason they signed molina for only 2 years.

          Finally, IMO Salty is going to turn out to be extremely overated

          • Bruno says:

            Besides the yankees hgave posada that contract with the intent that he would be able to catch until one of the young guys is ready

            And then in the first year of said contract he went out and showed how durable 36y/o catcher’s can (not) be. Plus, I said maybe.

        • Bruno says:

          Yes he can, but his bat is obviously better at C

  8. Mike Pop says:

    Ya BOy !!! Take that Gammons

  9. nady222214@yahoo.com says:

    Thats a great idea cashman meeting with cc any word if he accepted the offer of the meeting.

  10. E-ROC says:

    CC, Lincecum, Cain, Zito, and Sanchez would be downright filthy. That’s probably an understatement. Giants fans can always dream.

    Ben, can u please write about the idiocy of these writers criticizing A-Rod for joining the Dominican Republic team for the WBC?!

    • Ben K. says:

      Can we ignore it and pretend that the media doesn’t believe what David Ortiz said about A-Rod is actually compelling news?

    • Mike Pop says:

      I would think that rotation gets you 80 wins for your team just from them .. But then again that offense sucks

      • Bruno says:

        1-0 is still a win

      • E-ROC says:

        All San Fran has to do is re-sign Barry Bonds. He’ll solve offensive woes from behind bars; though the feds case is falling apart with each passing day.

        • christopher says:

          If they are willing to spend, there are enough good (not great) free agent hitters out there to make a big difference to their offense. I have to think that if they sign CC, they will add 2 or 3 impact bats

      • Steve H says:

        Zito is terrible and Sanchez sucked during the 2nd half of last year. And let’s not forget, as good as Cain is, he doesn’t get enough run support to win games.

        Those 5 guys combined for 62 wins last year and that’s with 2 Cy Young caliber performances. Plus CC had much better run support than he’d get in SF. Zito and Sanchez both had ERA’s over 5. Even with the mid-90′s Indians at your back you’re not going to win too many games with those ERA’s.

        • A.D. says:

          Sanchez will improve… but its looking that they’re going to deal him

          • Steve H says:

            He might improve, but pitching in one of the best pitching parks in baseball he has a 5.18 career era. He’s not old, but he’s also not 22 either.

        • Mike Pop says:

          They would definitely compete in the NL West with a rotation like that no matter what. I am not saying that Edgar is going to save him but add him to the lineup with Sandoval for the full year and it will be better than they were in 2008.. Also they have another young corner infielder who projects to be pretty good right ? Ishikawa

        • christopher says:

          i wouldnt call cain;s performance from last season anything near cy young quality

          he was good – nowhere near cy young good

    • christopher says:

      that is a rotation that could get them in the playoffs in that decision. I am glad they are meeting, but let’s not count CC as signed.

  11. christopher says:

    OMG OMG OMG

    Best of Mike and Mike has an old episode on with Stev Phillips on it. I am so excited and I just can’t hide it

  12. Mike W. says:

    I know that most people are preaching patience with CC, but I am getting pretty sick of waiting to hear from him. I know that everyone is saying, well, he’s just taking his time waiting for other offers and playing the role of a good businessman. Fine. But I hope that if Cash meets with him he tells him that he has his offer and that he needs to decide. I could be terribly wrong, because I am not a GM or work in a baseball front office, but it really appears no one is going to make an offer that comes close to what the Yanks offered. Uggghhhh…. I am probably just being a baby that wants his new present now, now now, but I still think that his silence about our offer up til now is likely an indicator that he doesn’t want to pitch here and that he is praying that someone else makes an offer that is somewhat in the ballpark of the Yanks did.

    I hope I am wrong though and he is just trying to squeeze a couple of extra bucks out of us.

    • Ben K. says:

      Rhetorical question time.

      When’s the next Yankee game that counts for anything? April?

      Then why are you, Mike W., getting sick of the Yanks’ not hearing from Sabathia?

      I could preach patience to you, but it won’t reach you. So allow me to ask why you’re so impatient. Spring Training starts in two months. Sabathia could sign on Feb. 10 and he’d still be a Yankee for the next six or seven years, and we’d all forget that he sat on the offer for four months. It just doesn’t matter.

      • Steve H says:

        It’s your blog, so I guess you can spew that common sense stuff as much as you wan, but come on. Someone has a burrito to eat, and waiting until Feb 10th just ain’t gonna cut it.

      • Mike W. says:

        Ummmmm posssibly because I want players on this team who want to play for us? Possibly because I am a season ticket holder who is going to be paying someone $140 million to pitch here?

        But I am sorry I insulted you with my impatience Ben.

    • A.D. says:

      Its the baby part.

      Think of it this way, when you get money for your birthday or holidays, or job, or whatever do you blow on the first thing you possibly can, or think about it weigh your options

    • christopher says:

      i totlally know how you feel, but as I have posted before – I really think there has been some communication between the parties with CC giving the yanks a soft deadline of when he will decide.

      i am guessing by the end of the winter meetings perhaps. maybe why cash is paying a visit. I have a feeling that we get our answer either way by the end of the meetings.

  13. christopher says:

    ooooh its the episode right before the yankees died last year…

    says cashman wont make any deals

    should have gotten Fuentes and another starter.

    Did predict a right handed hitting RF

  14. christopher says:

    makes it sound like the yanks have no idea what CC is thinking – I hope that isnt the case.

    personally, i think that they had an understanding that they would wait until “x” day until he made a decision. maybe d-day is coming

  15. Brooklyn Ed says:

    Here’s the possible non-tender candidates. The ones in bold, I think it could worth a shot, try to catch a lighting in a bottle:

    Brandon Backe
    Erik Bedard
    Matt Belisle
    Angel Berroa
    John Buck
    Chris Burke
    Daniel Cabrera
    Chris Capuano – coming back from TJ, didn’t the Yanks wanted him last year?
    Jason Davis
    Randy Flores
    Jason Frasor
    Chad Gaudin – has excellent stuff but sometimes struggle, possible #4 starter?
    Jimmy Gobble – move Coke to the rotation, and let him be the 2nd lefty in the pen
    Jonny Gomes
    Aaron Miles
    Brian Tallet
    Willy Taveras

  16. christopher says:

    why the hell is espn playing shows from july on its ny channel

  17. christopher says:

    does anyone thinks that the yankees will still pursue burnett, lowe, or sheets if they get sabathia. i know it was their initial plan, but it seems that with their stadium not projected to be as much a revenue maker next year not to mention that i am sure the steinbrenners have lost a lot in the stock market the last month or so, that they may not be willing to spend as much as they were intending to in late October early November.

    If they are going after this, their interest in sheets signals to me that they will not screw around with the other three. I see them making offers to bunett (a little more than the braves) and Lowe simoultaneously telling each that the first to accept gets the contract.

    If heither accepts they can overpay a bit for Sheets 3 years 13M per. That offer seems low but remember that Sheets is directly coming off an injury. Despite the fact that Burnett has had as many if not more injuries, the timing of the injury is going to cost sheets money and i see him jumping at that offer.

    I would love to see the yanks rotation headed by two brewers. Poetic justice considering the Brewers don’t have either of those guys if not for the yankee’s revenue sharing

    • Conor says:

      i like the idea of sheets for a relatively short term contract

    • Steve H says:

      If they get CC I would love to see them go after Sheets. He’s less of a sure thing than Lowe and probably even Burnett (for 2009 anyway), but CC fills such a huge void that I’d take the chance on Sheets getting and staying healthy. Even if Sheets has bumps and bruises throughout the year, if you could have him healthy for the playoffs behind CC/Joba in the rotation, you’d have 3 power pitchers, and power pitching is what wins in the playoffs. I think if no CC, you go for the surer things and hope Joba becomes your #1 and everyone else eventually slots in behind.

      • Ivan says:

        And Hughes as your 4th starter yikes.

      • jobatheheat says:

        Dont forget about Wang

      • Chris says:

        Exactly, the Phillies won with their great power pitcher Jamie Moyer!

      • christopher says:

        they have the depth to absorb a few DL visits if they sign CC, Petitte, and Sabathia and three pitchers CC, Wang, and Petitte with a good track record of giving 200 innings.

        in the event they get CC, I see sheets as a perfect fit, but I would like them to look into prior and garcia as possible mid season replacements. Garcia could be a real possibility as there are reports he is still hurt. Prior may still see himself as an Ace and would most likely want to go to a bad team where he will get a chance to start out of ST

  18. Dillon says:

    btw, i have IE and have same problems with the site.

    My big question is: Why aren’t more people talking about Sheets? Watching Yankees hot stove tonight and he wasn’t even brought up.

    • Ivan says:

      I have no idea.

    • Steve H says:

      I’m hoping they are very interested and are just trying to be stealth about it, but truly I have no clue. It wouldn’t be the first time, remember when Cash said Bubba Crosby was going to be our starting CF? I’m hoping for a repeat situation.

      And get rid of IE, Firefox is better in every way.

  19. jobatheheat says:

    Heres the big question for you? We sign CC and are looking for 1 more pitcher Andy for 1 yr or Sheets for 3? I pick Sheets ,dont get me wrong I would love to have Andy but if Sheets works out our starting rotation is a lock for the next couple years. Then next FA we just get two outfielders as long as one of them is holliday im cool with that.

    • jobatheheat says:

      I mean after CC we can only get 1 .Just two starters this year who do you pick and why?

    • Mike Pop says:

      Nope Id take Andy.. Then make a run for Manny or Dunn.. Andy is willing to go year to year which is awesome. Who knows maybe Kennedy will be ready for the bigs in 2010. Same can be said about Brackman or Z-Mac

      • Mike Pop says:

        And if there not I would rather sign Rich Harden next year assuming he doesnt sign an extension or gets badly injured… When healthy that guy could be top 5.. Absolutely filthy

      • christopher says:

        I am still hoping for CC, Sheets, Petitte Dunn and Manny (trading matsui), but I know that a pipedream.

        I do think after they get their pitching in order they will grab a bat, but dont be shocked if it int until late January as they look to pick off the bargain rack

    • Steve H says:

      Sheets. If we get back to the playoffs I would much rather have Sheets on the mound than Pettitte.

  20. Dillon says:

    The ideal staff seems pretty simple for me:

    CC
    Joba
    Wang
    Sheets
    Pettitte

    Hughes, Kennedy, Aceves, etc waiting for the first injury

    • Brooklyn Ed says:

      why is Joba #2? He is limited to a certain amount of innings. It’s more like CC-Wang-Sheets-Pettitte-Joba.

      • Steve H says:

        I agree with you if we’re talking April 2009, but I think going into the playoffs Joba may have established himself as the #2, and power pitching wins in the playoffs. If that’s our rotation, and everyone’s healthy heading into October, Wang’s my 4 with Joba and Sheets 2 and 3, in either order.

      • Chris says:

        It only matters where pitchers are slotted for the playoffs. During the regular season, all 5 starters should be treated equally (except for the occasional skipping a start).

        • christopher says:

          and to some extent early in the season where your Aces match against other teams Aces.

          Number 5 slot is crucial for the regular season as it allow the starter to be skipped

  21. Ben K. says:

    Alright, folks. We just made some changes to the site code. If any of the people using IE and getting the error messages are still have problems, let us know. We’ll keep working on it.

  22. Dillon says:

    Because Joba is going to be our second best pitcher. He might have less experience than Wang and be limited in innings, but make no mistake his ceiling is higher than everyone on the staff and he’ll be our ace in the very near future.

    • whozat says:

      The order of your rotation really doesn’t matter much and, with the off days that crop up in April and them trying to cap Joba’s innings, it’ll probably fluctuate a bunch over the course of the season.

      However, an interesting hypothetical question…Let’s say they sign CC and Andy (and maybe someone else, but that’s irrelevant for this question)…

      Who pitches on opening day? The brand new big-name acquisition? Wang, the guy who’s anchored the staff for the last several years, as long as he’s been healthy? Pettitte, one of the last holdovers of the glory days of yore?

      • jobatheheat says:

        Im sorry but gota say Wang we owe it to him. Hes done nothing but get better every year he pitches. But the Yankees will pick CC our new acquisition.

        • christopher says:

          CC is the opening day starter – if I am not mistaken they open on the road so they could organize it to get Andy the Stadium start.

          There is something to having your best lining up against other teams best in the early going before injuries start to kick in

  23. christopher says:

    Any thoughts on what type of contract RJ gets. I know that he was willing to take 8 million from the DBacks.

    As much as he didnt work out, or it percived that he didn’t, he wasnt bad in his time with the yankees and pitched through injury.

    It may sound crazy, but what about Randy back in the bronx..if things dont work out with Petitte and/or the 3. The yanks cash in on some publicity and for win 300 and you could do a lot worse as a 5th starter.

    Hell even if they get petitte and one of the three, if he is still around come february – why not take a chance on him and use him as a way to keep Joba fresh – tough to do though because I doubt he would sign to sit in the pen

    still love the idea of bringing in prior and/or freddie garcia on split contracts if they are not healthy enough to start the season. Wouldnt be bad insurance especially if they sign sheets

    • Brooklyn Ed says:

      Cashman said NO to that already. RJ didn’t want to be here in the first place, what makes you think he woulc come back? I read that he would consider the A’s as their 5th starter, or the Giants.

    • whozat says:

      He worked out for like…a one half of his first two seasons in pinstripes, and didn’t like playing here. I think that ship has sailed.

  24. jobatheheat says:

    Rathergive woods a shot as starting then Prior or Garcia to help fill in Inning limits. He probaly wants to start again ,maybee cheaper.

    • Brooklyn Ed says:

      Woods isn’t a starter anymore. His arm isn’t stronge anymore to start.

      • christopher says:

        he also made 10 million last year and I dont see him coming at a huge discount. I am just talking about guys to have down on the farm or in tampa just in case so we dont have to ever see Ponson again

  25. christopher says:

    one other thing with the site that is happening to me – dont know if it happening to everyone, but many times when I go to the home page the only article will be the one form the start of the day. I need to go into each comments and continue to click on the link to the next site on the link on the left side of the page until I get to the most recent post.

  26. christopher says:

    Does it make any sense to anyone else that the Yankees, if willing to take a hit this year could get their pitching and Manny? 1 year they have a 200 million dollar payroll, but next year Matsui and Damon maybe even Nady pay his salary.

    Am I crazy to think Manny with a chip on his shoulder would destroy the Red Sox and impact this team more than anyone other than CC

  27. christopher says:

    They could even play off the ARod vs. Manny race in all time homeruns

  28. Dillon says:

    Anyone that wants Manny and his lack of hustle on this team has lost their mind. The guy is a walking cancer

  29. Marty Puccio says:

    “Update 10:14 p.m.: I worte this rest of this post this afternoon”

    And you’re in law school? Jesus.

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