Phillies Today: Pitcher Cliff Lee spurns Yankees, returns to Phillies

Published: Tuesday, December 14, 2010, 12:19 AM Updated: Tuesday, December 14, 2010, 9:48 AM

By Marc Carig/The Star-LedgerThe Star-Ledger
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Ronald Martinez/GettyPitcher Cliff Lee declined a lucrative contract offer from the Yankees.

NEW YORK — Once again, the Yankees edged to the brink of finally getting their man. Once again, it appeared they had done all they could to land a game-changing pitcher. And once again, Cliff Lee is going somewhere else.

Lee, the top free agent on the market, who was viewed as the key to revamping a starting rotation that showed its flaws in the playoffs, escaped the Yankees’ grasp late Monday night.

The Phillies, who traded Lee to Seattle following the 2009 season, reacquired the 32-year-old ace lefty with an 11th-hour bid, according to a person with knowledge of the situation who requested anonymity because an official announcement has not been made.

It was a remarkable turn of events after a lengthy courtship that had grown so intense that it took on a life of its own.

Lee agreed to a five-year deal with the Phillies worth roughly $115 million, si.com reported, meaning Lee left nearly $50 million on the table to rejoin the Phillies. By average annual value, the Phillies’ reported offer matched the Yankees’ bid.

Lee’s agent, Darek Braunecker, did not return calls for comment.

The person with knowledge said the Yankees offered a six-year contract that would have paid Lee $23 million annually, with a player option for a seventh year valued at $16 million.

All told, the deal could have been worth $154 million, a staggering sum for a player considered by most to be an older free agent. It was the highest on the table.

Yahoo! Sports reported late Monday night that the Rangers offered a six-year deal, with a vesting option on a seventh year, that would have been worth $161 million. But the Yankees’ offer was guaranteed, making it the biggest offer.

The Yankees and the Rangers, who Lee helped to the World Series this season, entered the day as the most public suitors. Both front-runners walked away empty-handed, though the Yankees, struggling to keep pace with the free-spending Red Sox, felt most of the sting.

After an offseason in which the rival Red Sox added slugging first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and all-around star Carl Crawford, the Yankees must now figure out a way to keep up after missing out on the top free agent on the market.

It is the second close call the Yankees have had with Lee. They failed in a bid to acquire Lee at the non-waiver trade deadline in July, watching as the Mariners dealt the star pitcher to the Rangers, where he was viewed — quite correctly — as the final piece needed to lead Texas to its first appearance in the World Series.

Lee brings a 102-61career record back to Philadelphia with a 3.85 ERA in 222 regular-season games over nine seasons.

Lee’s star rose with the Indians until a disastrous 2007 season, when he was sent to the minor leagues, prompted by a string of ineffective outings.

To that point, he was 54-36 with a 4.64 ERA, walking 3.1 batters per nine innings.

He rebounded by winning the AL Cy Young Award with the Indians in 2008. Bolstered by impeccable control, Lee went 22-3 with a 2.54 ERA. Since the 2008 season, Lee has averaged a remarkable 1.3 walks per nine innings.

Since that bounceback season, Lee is 48-25 with a 2.98 ERA. He also added to his résumé by bringing some of his regular-season mastery with him to the playoffs. In 10 postseason starts, Lee is 7-2 with a 2.13 ERA, including dominating efforts against the Yankees in the 2009 World Series when he was the Phillies, and in last year’s American League Championship Series with the Rangers.

The Indians traded Lee to the Phillies, who after the 2009 season dealt him to the Mariners. Lee finished 12-9 this season with a 3.18 ERA. The Yankees would have been his fifth team.

The Yankees pursued the left-hander to beef up a rotation that came apart as the 2010 season progressed. The club had traded for Javier Vazquez last winter, believing his presence would be enough to bolster the staff.

But Vazquez’s fastball velocity dropped off, right-hander A.J. Burnett endured one of the worst seasons of his career, and lefty Andy Pettitte faltered after suffering a groin injury that wiped out most of his second half. By October, the Yankees’ lack of pitching depth had been exposed in a six-game loss to Lee and the Rangers in the ALCS.

Lee’s signing would have helped fill the Yankees’ biggest need entering the offseason.

Now, the Yankees face the same problem, but with nobody on the market comparable to Lee. The best remaining free agent on the market is Carl Pavano, whose disastrous four-year stint in the Bronx makes him an unlikely fit. As is Royals ace Zack Greinke, who might be available on the trade market, though for a heavy price in prospects and players.

Meanwhile, Lee heads to the Phillies, who with one bold move may have arguably one of the greatest starting rotations ever assembled. Lee joins another Cy Young Award winner in Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels.

Note: While the Yankees clearly now have more pressing needs, one person with knowledge of the situation said the team has expressed interest in bringing back a member of the 2009 World Series team, Jerry Hairston Jr.

A free agent, Hairston hit .244 in 119 games as a utility man with the Padres. He had helped the team in its surprising push for the NL West title until he was sidelined with a fractured right tibia.

Cashman traded for Hairston, 34, at the 2009 non-waiver trade deadline. He proved to be a valuable piece, hitting .237 in 45 games with the Yankees before carving out a small piece for himself in franchise postseason lore.

Hairston delivered a pinch-hit and scored the winning run in the 13th inning of the Yanks’ Game 2 victory against the Angels in the ALCS.

Hairston started games at all three outfield positions, shortstop, second base and third base for the Padres, and could be a fit for the Yankees if they intend on giving shortstop Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez more days off during the season.

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