Sergio Mitre and Chad Gaudin Have Non-Guaranteed Contracts with Yankees

One of the first things I said when the Yankees signed Chan Ho Park the other night was that his deal would make more sense if the Yankees moved Chad Gaudin.

Part of my reasoning was that for the past few weeks, the Yankees have been talking budget. It didn’t make sense to spend $1.2 million, even if it was a good deal, on your sixth reliever if you are being budget-conscious.

Well, it turns out that Gaudin’s contract, and Sergio Mitre’s for that matter, will only be a problem if the Yankees want it to be a problem.

According to Chad Jennings of the Journal News, both pitchers have non-guaranteed contracts. That means if either pitcher has a poor spring and doesn’t make the team, the Yankees don’t have to find a trade partner to get rid of their contracts.

It’s not likely to come to that though. Gaudin should have a decent shot to make the team, and if he doesn’t, his stuff is probably good enough that the Yankees would be able to deal him. The same goes for Mitre, but this does give them some protection in case of an injury to either pitcher or if they pitch so poorly that other teams won’t take them.

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