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But there was a rolling of the eyes when Lee was portrayed as some sort of heroic iconoclast – indifferent to the pile of money he left on the table – after he rejected the Yankees’ six-year offer of $150 million for the Phillies’ five-year offer of $120 million. That dismissal of a sixth year of guaranteed salary has been touted as evidence that money isn’t an issue for Lee.
Of course money isn’t an issue. Why would money be an issue for somebody guaranteed $120 million for five years of seasonal employment?
Lee is a terrific pitcher and consummate pro, but I always got the sense he looked at his time in Seattle as a four-month rest stop on the road to his long-term pursuit of happiness.
He knew, and we knew, the Mariners didn’t have the payroll flexibility to make him an offer too lucrative to ignore. From the moment he was stunned by his trade from Philadelphia to the moment he relocated to Philadelphia, Seattle was the side dish Cliff Lee didn’t order.
Casting him as the altruistic everyman who shunned certain wealth is a joke.
Speaking of jokes, did you hear the one about the Mariners, the Yankees and Felix Hernandez? It goes like this: Seattle general manager Jack Zduriencik, facing a rebuilding project that figures to be finished around the time Justin Bieber is contemplating a hair transplant, would be wise to consider an outrageous offer for Hernandez from the Yankees.
The scenario, I should add, is all speculation, with most of the speculation cooked up on Seattle-based blogs, then reheated on the Seattle sports-radio talk shows. I don’t blame my friends on either front for participating in this lively conversation topic – hey, it’s something to talk about on a rainy winter weekday, especially when the discussion of the Seahawks’ playoff possibilities has reached a saturation point – but, c’mon, Felix to the Yankees?
Felix to anywhere?
Like most general managers, Zduriencik doesn’t typically react to rumors, especially when the rumors don’t even qualify as rumors. But on Wednesday, Zduriencik reacted to the possibility he’d even be tempted to deal off the 2010 Cy Young Award winner by sending Sports Illustrated’s Jon Heyman a message, via Twitter, that read: “I have no interest in trading Felix.”
This was akin to Zduriencik sending a Twitter message that read: “I have no interest in practicing my bow-and-arrow hunting at the children’s petting zoo.” Or, “I have no interest in gargling with industrial-strength bathroom cleansers.”
Yes, the Yankees have been desperate to make an offseason splash comparable to the Red Sox’s recent acquisitions of first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and outfielder Carl Crawford. And then they’re jilted by Lee, the presumptive Nobel Peace Prize candidate.
Despite the organization’s public frustration with Zduriencik – he was close to signing off on a Lee trade to New York last summer before the Rangers swayed him with a package built around first baseman Justin Smoak – it is not inconceivable that the Yankees could put together the Mother of all Trade Offers for Felix Hernandez.
Think of an entrenched position player, and a starting pitcher, and two or three kids from the farm system who are projected as future big-league stars and, let’s see, what else? Oh, yeah, the promise to assume the $12 million remaining on Milton Bradley’s contract, along with Milton himself.
How does that sound? Does it pass the sniff test for you?
For me, it smells to high heaven.
I look at this way: There are 30 MLB teams. Between the majors and the low minors, each of the teams has about 200 players under contract. So let’s estimate there are 6,000 pro ballplayers. Of those 6,000 pro ballplayers, the most coveted – and, therefore, the most valuable – is Felix Abraham (Garcia) Hernandez.
It starts with talent. The specific performance numbers indicative of Hernandez’s talent were examined before the Cy Young voters rendered a landslide decision, so there’s no need to revisit that.
Now, factor in Felix’s age (he won’t turn 25 until April), his health (no injuries of note), his makeup (good guy, esteemed teammate) and his contract (guaranteed through the 2014 season, the Mariners are on the hook for $70.5 million, roughly half of what the Yankees offered Lee, a 31-year old who has spent lots of time on the disabled list.)
Factor in all those things, and then factor in this: The 2010 Giants won the World Series because of their superior starting pitching. They cobbled together some offense – a lot of it from the free-agent bargain bin – but their identity was starting pitching.
The Mariners own the No. 1 starting pitcher in the game. Michael Pineda is a potential No. 2 starter, and there’s a very good chance they could select UCLA hoss Gerrit Cole in the 2011 draft. It’s not beyond reason to imagine Seattle relying on a big-three rotation as dominant as the Giants.
About Cole: He’s a righthanded power pitcher preparing for his junior season with the Bruins. The Yankees thought so much of his ability in high school that they made him the No. 28 overall pick of the 2008 draft. An offer to renounce his UCLA scholarship followed. The offer was in excess of $4 million, all there in exchange for a signature on the bottom line of a contract.
And Cole, following the advice of his father, told the Yankees, “No thanks.”
Unlike Cliff Lee, Cole didn’t have the luxury of a $120 million alternative. Felix Hernandez, Michael Pineda, and Gerrit Cole. It might be a daydream today, but it’s the best blueprint for reviving the Mariners.
Score once in a while, by any means necessary, and stress run prevention on defense. Then leave the bulk of the work to a big-three starting staff that exudes royalty.
Ruled by a king.
