Sabathia re ups

Yankees signed LHP Sabathia to a one-year, $30 million contract extension with a vesting option for 2017.

  The new deal is tacked on to his current contract, which runs through 2015. While Sabathia said in a  conference call Monday night that he is comfortable in New York and wanted no part of the free agent process, it's hard to fault the guy for using his opt-out clause as leverage on a new deal. The big left-hander will now receive $25 million in 2016 and either a $25 million vesting option or a $5 million buyout in 2017. He is guaranteed $122 million over the next five seasons and could max out at $142 million over six years if he avoids an injury to his shoulder. A hefty price to pay, but now the Yankees can forge ahead with other offseason priorities.  


The Yankees initially offered Sabathia a deal for five years and $120.5 million, allowing him to just top Lee’s mark. But the Yankees upped their offer to ensure he would not opt out and hit the free-agent market.
Sabathia’s 2017 option will vest automatically unless he finishes 2016 on the disabled list, spends more than 45 days on the DL in 2016 due to a shoulder injury, or is forced to pitch out of the bullpen six times in 2016 because of shoulder problems. Sabathia also will continue to have a no-trade clause.
“It was a big motivation,” Sabathia said of avoiding the free agency drama. “I didn’t want to be a part of being a free agent and opting out and doing all that stuff.”
General manager Brian Cashman released a statement, praising the 31-year-old as “the ace of our pitching staff, a leader in our clubhouse and a driving force for the Yankees in our community. He is exactly the type of player and person that Yankees fans and this organization can be proud of.”
Sabathia lost 25 pounds last winter but put some of it back on this past season. He said he will prioritize the weight loss again, though he admitted he “got a little lax during the season” with his conditioning.
“I think it’s something I do because it’s for me and to be proactive,” he said of losing weight. “I just need to go out and be healthy and try to do what I can to be out there for every start. For me, that means losing weight. That’s what I’ll do.”