I’ve been sitting on this for a few days just because we’ve had better things to talk about. But since it’s Friday afternoon, and everyone enjoys humor on Friday afternoon, let’s make fun of Carl Pavano.

In an article about the mutual affection Carl Pavano and the Marlins seem to have for each other this winter, the long-time denizen of the DL issued a gem of a quote. “I look back at those four years with the Yankees, it was exhausting,” he said.

Exhausting. Someone get this man a dictionary.

Carl Pavano was so exhausted by his four years on the Yankees. He was exhausted by the 26 starts he made over four years, by the nine games he managed to win and by the 145.2 innings he pitched. Or perhaps he was just exhausted cashing his paycheck every other week while contributing little else to the Yanks.

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Just a couple of notes to take you into the Election Night proceedings:

• The Yankees have declined the $13 million option for Carl Pavano and the $22 million option for Jason Giambi, according to Mark Feinsand. There’s a chance, albeit slim, that the Yankees could look to retain one or both, but on more team-friendly terms. They’ll pay Pavano $1.95 million to buy him out, Giambi $5 million.
• The team did not, however, announce anything regarding Damaso Marte’s $6 million option for 2009. While it has been speculated that they will decline it, indications are that the team is looking to sign him to a different deal, one that likely spans multiple years. Worst case, they offer him arbitration and net a couple of draft picks.
• According to Ken Davidoff, the Yankees have had “very preliminary” discussions with the agents for CC Sabathia. This is no big deal of course, certainly no bigger than A.J. Burnett opting out of his contract. The Yanks are expected to make an offer exceeding the contract of Johan Santana (six years, $137.5 million with a $25 million club option for 2014).

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It’s always amusing when the back page of the Daily News doesn’t match up with the article it’s over-hyping. Today’s tabloid exploitation comes to us courtesy of Carl Pavano.

According to Mark Feinsand, some source feels that Brian Cashman may be interested in Carl Pavano. To the back page editors, this is an opportunity to splash Pavano all over the back pages with some unknown intent. But had these editors actually bothered to read the article, they would have come across a few key passages from Feinsand:

“I’m not ruling anything out,” Cashman said. “We have needs, so we’ll have to go to the marketplace, be it through free agency or through trades, to fill those needs.”

…

Bringing back Pavano certainly won’t be the big move the Yankees are looking to make this winter, but rather one that could help fill in the back end of the rotation.

That’s really what this is all about. Hardly different from the Sergio Mitre deal, the Yankees would bring back Pavano for one year at a very low base price with some incentives. If it doesn’t work out early, they can cut their losses. If it looks like Pavano might be half-useful, the Yanks could either keep him or trade him to a team in need of pitching. There are only about 29 other clubs that fit that bill.

For his part, Pavano is supposedly interested in returning to the Yanks in an effort to live down his bad reputation. “At the end of the day, his first choice would be to come back to New York,” Tom O’Connell, Pavano’s agent, said to Feinsand. “He feels he has some unfinished business.”

As long as the Yanks aren’t going to consider Pavano one of their first five starters, I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to tossing another arm in the mix come March. One thing is for sure; it would give the Daily News something to overhype every five days and these people something to ignorantly rail against too.

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It’s amazing what $39.95 million can buy in these troubled economic times. For their pretty penny, the Yanks got 26 starts and nine wins. That’s just $4.43 million a win. Act now; supplies are going fast.

In a rather inglorious fashion, the Carl Pavano Era in the Bronx likely ended last night when Pavano and a bunch of Yankee farmhands lost to the Blue Jays 8-2. Roy Halladay threw a complete game, giving up six hits and a walk in the process, and if it seemed like the fifth time this year the Yanks have lost to Hallday, well, that’s because it was. Only once did the Yanks beat the AL Cy Young candidate, and that was a way back on Opening Day when Chien-Ming Wang outdueled Halladay.

For Pavano, today was hardly a stellar start in his effort to find himself a job for next year. He lasted just 3.2 innings, giving up five runs on eight hits and two walks. He struck out one.

On the season, Pavano made seven starts for the Yanks and has thrown 34.1 innings. He has a 4-2 record with a 5.77 ERA, and he struck out 15 while walking 10. While we’ve debated the merits of picking up Pavano’s option for 2009 to ensure some pitching depth, the truth is that Pavano just hasn’t offered up much. He hasn’t shown much control; his breaking pitches are doing much breaking. It seems as though, after three season of inactivity, Pavano has turned from a pitcher into a thrower.

What Pavano and his failed tenure symbolize for the Yanks is up for debate. It could stand for the frustrations of the last few seasons. It could stand for an era of decadence in which the Yanks tried to grab every big-name free agent out of there regardless of numbers of make-up. Or it could just have been a high-profile mistake that, today, doesn’t even seem that expensive.

At some point, another Carl Pavano will come along. In fact, Carl wasn’t the first of his kind – Darren Dreifort and Mike Hampton come to mind — and he won’t be the last. But as Pavano heads for greener pastures, perhaps the Yanks have learned their lessons about signing pitchers that just aren’t that good. Good bye, Carl. We hardly knew ye.

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No Yankee fan thinks too highly of Carl Pavano these days. While Pavano has managed to make three starts in a row for the first time since 2005, Yankee fans generally feel that he took the team for a ride. But what if he didn’t? What if he’s a tragic figure? That’s the question Tyler Kepner poses and attempts to answer in today’s Times. Pavano certainly should be blamed for his injuries, but maybe there’s a sympathetic side to this tale as well.

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Not much, says Newsday’s Jim Baumbach. The media these days really loves to doubt Pavano, but I’m not ready to hop on that bandwagon. Perhaps the oft-injured Carl can do some good for the Yankees over the next five weeks. He is, after all, pitching for a contract.

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As we near the first Carl Pavano start since April 2007, Mike Pagliarulo has chimed in with a piece of reverse psychology analysis. The former Yankee believes that Pavano can be effective because he’s made just two starts since the middle of 2005. And some people accuse us of focusing too much on the silver lining and not the cloud. That is some admirable logic from Pags right there.

Meanwhile, as part of the Welcome Back tour for Carl Pavano, Tyler Kepner looks at a few contracts worse than Pavano’s. Yes, Kei Igawa earned himself a spot on that list.

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It’s official, PeteAbe’s got the news. I’m kinda excited, actually. Imagine if he goes like, 6-0, 1.50 ERA down the stretch and the Yanks make the playoffs. All would be forgotten, no?

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I guess the ice pack worked. According to Ed Price, Carl Pavano’s neck is feeling better, and Pavano will probably start on Saturday in Baltimore. This could be a momentous occasion indeed. Fun fact: Carl Pavano has made two starts since the beginning of the 2007 campaign, and I witnessed one of them in person.

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While Tyler Kepner speculates that Carl Pavano could — baring some not-so-catastrophic injury — be Saturday’s starter, Pavano seems to have other plans in mind. According to numerous reports — including one from PeteAbe — Pavano skipped a bullpen session yesterday with a stiff neck. I mean, seriously? Seriously? Just pitch.

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