Kinda, sorta, good news for the Cleveland Indians came out of New York. The Mets just agreed to pay Johann Santana, a really good pitcher about 21 million dollars a year for seven years.
Why is this good news kinda, sorta for the Cleveland Indians?
Well they just happen to have the reigning Cy Young winner Charles Carsten Sabathia, CC for those outside of Cleveland, who is in exactly the same situation Santana is or was. He is going into his last year with Cleveland before going into free agency in 2009. The Indians are facing the dilemma of having a limited bankroll for salaries and losing him after this season to better financed ballclubs. So according to what I have read, the Indians have offered CC, or more correctly his agent, 20 million a year for five years, the most the Indians have ever offered to pay anyone in their history.
The good news? That's pretty close to the 21 million Santana is going to get, but two years shorter for the length of the contract. So should Cleveland be jubilent that it's even this close? and maybe they have a chance to sign him?
Cleveland fans do not have good memories of these contract talks and their stars going to free agency. The most recent star to walk for a few dimes more was Jim Thome, the one all of Ohio thought would certainly stay with the team who made him a star, but alas as with Manny Ramerez who also walked, so did the big Jimbo.
But hope springs eternal and since there's only one million dollars difference, what's one million between friends, mere chump change baseball style. But CC will probably want to have the seven years also and most teams do not want to sign pitchers to very long contracts. The Indians being one of many teams to get burned doing that, but today is another day and the Indians are on the upswing so maybe, just maybe they will open up the Jack Benny vault and taker another chance for the fans of Ohio, including me.
Why is this good news kinda, sorta for the Cleveland Indians?
Well they just happen to have the reigning Cy Young winner Charles Carsten Sabathia, CC for those outside of Cleveland, who is in exactly the same situation Santana is or was. He is going into his last year with Cleveland before going into free agency in 2009. The Indians are facing the dilemma of having a limited bankroll for salaries and losing him after this season to better financed ballclubs. So according to what I have read, the Indians have offered CC, or more correctly his agent, 20 million a year for five years, the most the Indians have ever offered to pay anyone in their history.
The good news? That's pretty close to the 21 million Santana is going to get, but two years shorter for the length of the contract. So should Cleveland be jubilent that it's even this close? and maybe they have a chance to sign him?
Cleveland fans do not have good memories of these contract talks and their stars going to free agency. The most recent star to walk for a few dimes more was Jim Thome, the one all of Ohio thought would certainly stay with the team who made him a star, but alas as with Manny Ramerez who also walked, so did the big Jimbo.
But hope springs eternal and since there's only one million dollars difference, what's one million between friends, mere chump change baseball style. But CC will probably want to have the seven years also and most teams do not want to sign pitchers to very long contracts. The Indians being one of many teams to get burned doing that, but today is another day and the Indians are on the upswing so maybe, just maybe they will open up the Jack Benny vault and taker another chance for the fans of Ohio, including me.
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