LAS VEGAS (AP) - CC Sabathia and the New York Yankees agreed on the framework for a $161 million (124.5 million euros), seven-year contract on Wednesday, the richest for a pitcher in Major League Baseball history.
The Yankees and Sabathia's agents still need to work out all the details, a baseball official familiar with the talks told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been completed and the pitcher must pass a physical.Sabathia has the right to opt out after three seasons and become a free agent again.
Sabathia will give the Yankees a new marquee star as they head into the new $1.3 billion Yankee Stadium, where seats sell for up to $2,500 each. His deal will top the previous mark for a pitcher, a $137.5 million, six-year contract agreed to by Johan Santana and the New York Mets last winter. His $23 million average salary is just ahead of Santana's $22.9 million
Among all players, it will trail only Alex Rodriguez's $275 million, 10-year contract with the Yankees, Rodriguez's earlier $252 million, 10-year agreement with Texas, and Derek Jeter's $189 million, 10-year contract with the Yankees.
"I'm sure every team in baseball would love to have him. He's a guy who's an intimidating factor on the mound," Yankees captain Jeter said at the MLB winter meetings in Las Vegas.
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman left Las Vegas on Tuesday for a quick trip to the pitcher's home in the San Francisco area, sparking the final stages of negotiations.
"There's a lot of layers in the process, Until that process is completed I'm kind of prevented from saying too much," Cashman said. "Legally I've got to protect myself. And, you know, you're never done until you're done, and so, we're not done."
Cashman couldn't recall ever before making a recruiting trip to a free agent's home. He had remembered seeing Sabathia's on an episode of "MTV Cribs."
"When I walked in, I did tell him, it was like: I've been here before," Cashman said.
Signing Sabathia was the No. 1 offseason priority for the Yankees, whose streak of 13 consecutive playoff appearances ended this year. He would join a rotation that includes Wang Chien-ming and Joba Chamberlain.
New York hopes to re-sign Andy Pettitte, who also is a free agent, and has had talks this week with Ben Sheets and the agents for A.J. Burnett.
Many of Sabathia's questions to the Yankees had been about what it would be like to pitch in New York, and part of the reason Cashman traveled to Vallejo was to meet with Sabathia and his wife Amber to discuss that issue.
"The only times people tend to struggle is when they put pressure on themselves," Jeter said. "It's still the same game whether you're playing in New York, or you're playing in Cleveland, Milwaukee, Tampa."
Milwaukee acquired Sabathia from Cleveland in July, and he went 11-2 for the Brewers. Sabathia was a workhorse, throwing seven complete games and three shutouts in 17 starts as the Brewers made the playoffs for the first time since 1982.
General manager Doug Melvin, who had offered a five-year deal worth about $100 million, said he was notified early Wednesday that the Brewers were no longer in the running.
