No new official information has been reported from either side–but that may be precisely why articles about the scenario where the Yankees fail to sign a big name free agent starting pitcher this offseason are starting to show up.
First, Jordan Bastian at MLB.com reports that the Yankees may not make a contract offer to A.J. Burnett. Burnett, through his agent, appears to be insisting on a five-year deal. While the market may not provide one, Bastian says that the Yankees simply will not.
In the CC Sabathia ring, separate postings at River Ave. Blues and Brew Crew Ball look at the "actual" disparity between the financial terms of the contracts offered to the big lefty by the Yankees and Brewers. I say "actual" because, as the articles admit, this type of information is hard to concretely determine. However, as the authors show, the actual difference may be alarmingly smaller than most might have thought.
Finally, Phil Rogers at the Chicago Tribune takes the issue head on: what if the Yankees fail to sign Burnett, Sabathia, and Derek Lowe? Rogers specifically talks about Sabathia’s likely preference for the West Coast (he’s from California), and/or an opportunity to hit (the guy did put up a .230 BA, with two doubles and a home run in 50 plate apperances). Notably, Rogers doesn’t offer much of a Plan B for the Yankees if all three pitchers end up elsewhere.
Does such a plan really even exist?
