Yankees vs. Tigers: Has CC Sabathia Pitched His Last Game in Pinstripes?

Have we seen the last of CC Sabathia in pinstripes?

After allowing four runs in only 5.1 innings on Monday against the Detroit Tigers, the Yanks are in huge trouble with AJ Burnett on the mound in a 2-1 hole.

A Yankees loss would mark the end of the season and the beginning of the Sabathia speculation. The 31-year-old has the option to opt out of his contract and cash in on an even bigger pay day. 

Right now he’s in the third year of a $161M contract over seven years. That averages to roughly $23M per season.

Baseball insiders have estimated that Sabathia could command as much as $30M a season for the next five years on the open market.

Publicly, Sabathia has claimed he doesn’t plan on opting out and enjoys being a Yankee…but he’s not dumb. He knows how weak the rotation is, he knows about the awful contracts that won’t be going away anytime soon.

He also could be sick of the pressure cooker that is New York City. The calm and laid back Sabathia may not be the biggest fan of it all. Do you think he’s sick of hearing about his weight?

Then there is the big elephant in the room for Yankee fans…Sabathia is from California and the Los Angeles Angels are going to have a fat wallet to work with this winter. The Angles have a much younger and hungrier team that is truly a Sabathia away from being the favorites to win the World Series in 2012.

So lets see…more money…less media attention…better team outlook for the next five years…better weather…home state.

Hmmmmm.

What decision would you make?

He brought the Yanks one World Series title, so you can’t argue about his legacy in New York.

Sorry Yankee fans, you may have already seen the last of your ace of the last three years. Does that mean Ivan Nova starts Opening Day?

Yikes.