C.C. Sabathia Re-Signs with Yankees: Where Else Would He Have Gone?

This just in from the "Is anyone the slightest bit surprised?" department. CC Sabathia isn't leaving the New York Yankees this coming offseason. 

In fact, he's not even going to officially opt out of his contract. Instead he's staying put and the Yankees have extended  Sabathia's contract without ever even allowing him to test the 2012 free agent market. 

Not bad for Sabathia. In the NFL, players have to hold out of camp and wage massive PR campaigns to get contract extensions. In MLB, all Sabathia had to do was spend the season doing two things: win games and tell everyone that would listen that he was going to opt out after the season. 

It worked like a charm. Sabathia, who was previously scheduled to receive $92 million over the next four seasons will now instead receive $122 million over the next five years. That's actually a good deal for the Yankees. 

Let's face it, the big fear among the Yankee brass was that Sabathia would want to extend for six or seven years, thus increasing the likelihood of Sabathia becoming the pitcher's version of Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez, who signed a ten year contract extension after exercising his own opt-out clause following the 2007 season, has become possibly one of the largest financial albatrosses in baseball history. 

Last year, with a full six seasons remaining on his contract, Alex Rodriguez, the league's highest paid player ever played in less than 100 games as a result of a hip injury sustained over a year ago. Since signing his extension, he's experienced declines in nearly every major statistical category and when one adds in the health concerns it's not a stretch to suggest that the Yankees will be overcompensating Alex Rodriguez by a considerable amount for the next six seasons. 

That was a scenario the Yankees had no interest in duplicating with Sabathia but they also need Sabathia back in New York. The Yankees have starting rotation question marks tonight even after securing Sabathia's services for the better part of the decade. Losing him would not be an acceptable scenario. 

Then again, there wasn't quite as much leverage on Sabathia's side as one might think. In fact, it's worth asking the question if Sabathia did decide to become a free agent in hopes of signing a six or seven year deal which would top out in the $150-175 million range "who was he going to get that from?"

It's not as if baseball history is littered with pitchers who got deals in excess of 100 million dollars and were worth it. Mike Hampton, Barry Zito, Johan Santana, Kevin Brown, Cliff Lee and CC Sabathia. Those are your $100 million pitchers and only Lee and Sabathia have a shot at actually being considered men who could earn their massive contracts.

Given the poor returns teams have received on those types of deals they probably weren't about to line up en masse to offer up outrageous sums of money to Sabathia. Yes, he's one baseball's best lefties, with a fairly impressive record in big games and a sterling reputation as far as his clubhouse presence goes. He's not exactly a picture of fitness, though. 

That, plus the lofty price tag would have scared off the bulk of baseball teams. When one factors in the circumstances regarding the Red Sox (burdened by the contracts of Carl Crawford and John Lackey among others), the Dodgers (financial ruin), the Mets (financial ruin, again) and the Phillies (they don't need pitching) then it's not out of the question that Sabathia could have hit the free agent market only to find that no one was offering what he was seeking.  

In the end, the Yankees needed Sabathia and Sabathia, in turn, needed the Yankees. Now all the Red Sox need is a miracle. I doubt they'll get that from the Yankees or Sabathia though.