Home Run Derby

The “CC” in CC Sabathia used to stand for “Carsten Charles.”  Or maybe “Captain Cheeseburger.”

The New York Yankees want to change it to “Cha-Ching”

This past Friday, the New York Yankees offered CC Sabathia a six-year, $140 Million contract to anchor their starting rotation and help bring a World Series Championship the Playoffs back to the Bronx.   The offer is $40 million more than the five-year, $100 million offer he reportedly received from the Brewers to stay in Milwaukee.  And it would be the largest pitching contract in the history of Major League Baseball, besting the $137 million Johan Santana received from the New York Mets last offseason.

No other team is going to exceed (or even match) the Yankees contract offer.  The Brewers can’t do it.  Sabathia’s preferred home-state Dodgers and Angels won’t do it either.  They’ll be looking for a discount … and the Yankees’ monster offer might prevent the LA teams from even entering the bidding.  The Yankees have basically made this into a pissing match … and they drank the most beer before the contest started. 

But I think it would be a bad idea for Sabathia to sign with the Yankees … 

I don’t think Sabathia will do well under the bright lights and the pressure of the big city – he’s only pitched in the small media markets of Cleveland (17th) and Milwaukee (34th) – places where they’re just happy to make the playoffs and not be called “Mistake by the Lake” for a year.   Not anything close to the demands of Yankee fans. 

And he’s a California guy … that typically means laid back and easy going.  The antithesis of New York – the city that never sleeps.

Every game with the Yankees is played under gigantic pressure and a huge microscope from management, fans, and the East Coast Media.  A $140 Million contract would just add more pressure.

And pressure is big … because I don’t think Sabathia plays well under pressure.  His recent record in big games is … how do I put this mildly … horrific.

• 2007 ALDS Game 1- Sabathia got the win, but only went five labored innings against the Yankees. 
• 2007 ALCS Game 1 – Sabathia gave up 7 hits, 5 Walks and 8 Earned Runs as the Red Sox blew out the Indians at Fenway.
• 2007 ALCS Game 5 – With Cleveland up 3 games to 1, Sabathia gave up 10 hits and 4 Earned Runs in a loss that shifted momentum to the Red Sox.
• 7/28/08  – With the Brewers trailing the Cubs by a game in the NL Central, Chicago came to Milwaukee for a four-game series.  Leading by a run in the first game, Sabathia loaded the bases in the seventh and gave up two runs. 
• 9/16/08 – With the Brewers trying to keep a 1/2 game lead in the WildCard race, the Cubs jumped on Sabathia early with 3 runs in the first three innings.
• 2008 NLDS Game 2 – With the Brewers needing to steal a game in Philly to have a chance to advance, Sabathia gave up 5 Hits, 4 Walks, and 5 Earned Runs in 3 2/3 innings – putting the Brewers in a big 0-2 hole. 

Sure, Sabathia was probably throwing on fumes the past two Octobers after hurling 241 and 253 innings the last two seasons.  But can you name me the last time Sabathia played awesome in a late-season, must-win game against a team who had something to play for?  The 9/28/08 Wildcard clincher doesn’t count – the Cubs started Angel Guzman in that game. 

Also, Sabathia’s been able to load up on patsies lately.  Sabathia played 18 games with the Brewers in 2008 - twelve against teams with losing records.  To his credit, he went an astounding 8-1 against them with a 1.50 ERA. 

But the Yankees don’t get to play the dregs of NL Central in September. 
They get Boston.  And Sabathia couldn’t figure out Boston in October 2007.

In my opinion, Sabathia signing with the Yankees would be a disaster.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 18th, 2008 at 3:39 pm and is filed under Brewers, Hot Stove, Indians, Pitching, Yankees. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.