Teams can talk money with Cliff Lee’s agent at midnight tonight, and if the stud of this year’s shallow free-agent pool is looking for six to seven years, Darek Braunecker’s phone will be dominated by the Yankees and Rangers.
Because the Yankees didn’t get deals done with Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera during the five-day period when they had exclusive negotiating rights to them, other clubs can talk money with Jeter and River at midnight, too.
Despite Lee’s pitching genius, teams are wary of offering six or seven years for a pitcher who turns 33 in August.
Of course, the Yankees aren’t one of them. And the Rangers, armed with new TV money, vowed during the ALCS they won’t be bringing a bayonet to a nuclear war with the Yankees.
“I would be surprised if he signs with anybody but the Yankees or Rangers,” a source said.
Believing they eventually will bring Jeter and Rivera back, although those talks could get testy, the Yankees have made signing Lee their top priority. They were good enough this year to make the playoffs with a staff that had question marks behind CC Sabathia. And those question marks, Phil Hughes and A.J. Burnett, were exposed in the postseason.
If Lee, who was a perfect 7-0 in eight career postseason games until losing Games 1 and 5 in the World Series to the Giants, is searching for Sabathia-type money (seven years, $161 million), it appears to be a two-horse race. There are several other teams that may not be afraid of the dollars but are scared by the years.
An AL talent evaluator believes it’s the price of doing business when you deal with an elite hurler with the pitching knowledge Lee possesses. And don’t ignore Carl “American Idle” Pavano, the second best free-agent pitcher.
“You have to pay for it because Lee may be one of the few guys that will be able to pitch well after his stuff backs up, a la Andy Pettitte,” a scout said.
If Lee doesn’t land in The Bronx, the Yankees will pursue a starter through a trade (Zach Greinke?) and might make a play for outfielder Carl Crawford, who is expected to draw interest from the Rangers and Angels.
