Union Pressure
C.C. Sabathia finished the year posting a combined 2.70 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and a 59:251 BB:K rate in 253 IP. He posted 10 complete games including 5 shutouts. The only reason he didn’t win his second straight Cy Young is due to spending half a season in each league. So is it surprising at all that the Yankees offered 6/140? It is a near identical contract to what Johan Santana received from the Mets in the off-season. But should Sabathia make the same as Santana?
The MLBPA seems to think so. Via RotoWorld, the New York Daily News discusses pressure he may be receiving from the union. Those close to Sabathia believe he wants to stay in Milwaukee but wouldn’t mind a move closer to home (he is from California). The union’s potential pressure would cause Sabathia to take the Yankees’ contract offer despite a personal preference not to. The more money Sabathia makes, the more money the rest of the starting pitchers will make despite the country’s economic situation.
While Sabathia making an annual 23.3 Million is good for the MLBPA and the greedy players and agents therein, is it good for baseball? Should the Union have any impact on the way Sabathia thinks? After all, this is the same union that clearly knows what is good for the sport - they found it necessary to claim “cigarettes are worse than steroids” four years ago, and don’t forget their major league screw-up of the Mitchell Report.
Ultimately, deservedly or not, Sabathia will do one of two things - listen to the union and take $140 Million to help raise the salaries of all players; or he will usher in an ideology that has been all but officially removed from baseball - the concept of the big star hometown discount.
