According to some sources, A.J. Burnett has been offered $80 million for 5 years by the Yankees. That is a lot of money for a guy who had an ERA above 4.50 against teams he would pitch against with the Yankees (he had a 1.64 ERA against the Yankees) and has only pitched a complete season 3 times in 8 "full" major league seasons.
Derek Lowe would be the safe bet because of his experience and consistency; however, unlike most people, I happen to think Burnett is the way to go.
Granted, $80 million for him is probably a lot more money than anyone else will offer, but, the upside of Burnett outweighs the risk of injury. The first assumption we must have is that the Yankees simply don't care about $$$. The question is who should the Yankees get, not whether one is financially worthwhile over the other.
That being said, Burnett has absolutely wicked stuff. He has a 95+ MPH fastball and a devastating off-speed pitch. He is capable of striking out 20 on any given night.
With regards to Lowe, he is 4 years older than Burnett, but will still likely expect a 4 or 5 year deal. I think he will have 'Pedro-syndrome' where he will falter towards the end of his contract due to age (which causes injuries). Burnett does not have this issue because he will only be 37 at the end of the deal (meaning he will be in the same position Lowe is right now).
The bottom line: Lowe is more experienced, a little cheaper (this does not matter to the Yankees), but does not have great stuff. Burnett is only 31, has Top 10 stuff in baseball, but is injury prone.
With the Yankees budget (or lack there of) and willingness to take risks (because they can always store the guy in the minors, Tampa, Brian Cashman's basement and sign a new guy [ala - Pavano, Igawa, Jaret Wright]), I think A.J. Burnett is the way to go!
Yaros
Burnett has never proven he can consistently stay healthy. He's never played on a winner (he was hurt in 03 with florida). He has AMAZING stuff - obviously. But as a mets fan, I HOPE the yankees give him 5 years for 80 mil
ReplyDeleteWhy would you hope that the Yankees sign him for 5/80?
ReplyDeleteYou don't think the Yanks will have enough money to sign other players if they do?
I agree whole heartedly with your blog. Just wondering why it's taking so damn long for them to act. I'm a die hard Yankee fan and it's killing me that the market been open for three weeks and we have not signed anyone significant. Who cares about the fifth year as writers have eluded to. I just want to see someone better than what we have following Wang.
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