Jon Heyman reports that the Yankees were able to come to an agreement with their trio of arbitration-eligible pitchers. Phil Hughes got 2.7 million, Joba Chamberlain received 1.4 million, and Boone Logan scored 1.2 million. Avoiding arbitration hearings tends to be a positive for both sides, as the hearing can often get acrimonious and may impact the relationship between the club and the player. looking at the deals themselves, they each seem fair, although Logan may have gotten a smidge too much for a LOOGY.
It is also interesting to note the gap between the deals given to Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain. Joba being a reliever likely saved the Yankees between 1.0 and 1.3 million dollars or so. The conspiracy theorist in me believes that now that the Yankees are paying Joba on a reliever scale, they may be more likely to announce that he will be given a chance to earn a rotation slot in Spring Training. While the amount of money at stake here is a relative pittance for the Yankees, they had no reason to announce him as a possible starter before the settlement and possibly cost themselves that money. This is probably wishful thinking, and I am fairly certain Brian Cashman will dispel this notion once he emerges from hiding to discuss the Soriano deal. However, for the time being, I will just cross my fingers and hope that someone in the Yankees organization still believes in Joba the starter.
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3 Responses to Yankees Avoid Arbitration With Trio Of Pitchers
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BTW – saw Cashman speak at the Middlesex (CT) Chamber of Commerce meeting this morning (January 18th). He drove from Darien to Cromwell, CT in an ice storm leaving his house at 5:30 am to get there about 8:00. He could have easily canceled. Showed me a lot of character.
Anyway – he stated Joba will be a reliever and that there isn’t any chance he will start (not sure if I believe that). He also joked with red sox fans that currently the red sox have a higher payroll then the yankees. He stated, “so you red sox fans can’t use payroll as an excuse anymore.”
Cashman was very entertaining and very down to earth…
Another factor may be that, as long as Pettitte is out there as a possible starter, it makes no sense to say that Joba will get another chance in the rotation. Plans A and B might be Pettitte or a trade for a starter (in no particular order). Joba in the rotation might be Plan C. I have a hard time believing that Cashman really means that there are no circumstances in which Joba would be put back into the rotation.
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