Since the beginning of May, Indians left-hander C.C. Sabathia has pitched like the reigning Cy Young Award winner. Although his record is just 4-4, his ERA is 2.42 over that span, and he has struck out 74 and walked just 13 in 74 innings. You can make the argument that he has been the best pitcher in the American League in that time frame. He even belted a tape measure home run Saturday against the Dodgers. However, it’s time for the big lefty to put his money where his mouth is.
During the radio broadcast of Saturday’s game, Tom Hamilton remarked that C.C. would like to stay with the Indians. This thought was reiterated in Sunday’s The Plain Dealer. It occurred to me that there is one man who has the ability to make this happen. That man would be the same person who made the comment, Carsten Charles Sabathia. It seems simplistic, but if the big man let his agent know he wanted a deal to get done with the Indians, I’m pretty sure the Dolan family would be willing to do the deal.
There is no question the Indians’ ownership has financial restraints. However, they are not going to offer Sabathia a five-year contract worth $50 million. That’s a low-ball offer, and they understand that. The Indians would be willing to go as high as $18-19 million per year and as many as five year guaranteed. Obviously I don’t know that for sure, but the front office was willing pay market value for Jake Westbrook and Travis Hafner, so why would the big lefty be an exception.
Listen; if Sabathia wants the last dollar, he has to realize he is not going to get it in Cleveland. The big market teams such as the Red Sox, Yankees, Dodgers, Cubs, and etc. can put together a very lucrative package for the pitcher. There is no question about that. But, the Tribe’s offer won’t be cheap either. If C.C. wants to stay with the team “he grew up with”, he can take that deal, stay an Indian, and still be a very, very rich young man.
If Sabathia is going to go out on the market following the season, he needs to stop telling the media and the fans that he wants to stay. He should say nothing and go out and pitch to the best of his abilities. It hurts the loyal Tribe fans more to hear one of their stars tell them how much they love playing here, only to take the money when free agency comes calling. It would be better for all involved for the big lefty to be quiet. Everyone would like to make an extra $2 million per year, but again, it’s not like C.C. will be a pauper if he takes the Indians’ offer.
Sabathia often talks about how the Indians looked out for him and his arm when he was a young pitcher. They didn’t put undue stress on him, kept his pitch counts down, and he believes that is one reason he has managed to stay relatively healthy thus far. He also talks about how he grew up here, and how much he likes and respects his teammates. If he wants to remain in Cleveland, he is the person who controls that decision. His agent works for him, not vice-versa.
MW
Cleveland Sports Perspective 