Cliff Lee: for the City of Brotherly Love and Not of Money

In signing with the Philadelphia Phillies, left handed pitcher Cliff Lee has done what most of us assume never happens in professional sports: he has followed his heart and not the money.

Since the last pitch of the World Series, it has been assumed that Lee, the crown jewel of the free agent class, would either return to the Texas Rangers or sign with the New York Yankees. In fact, most assumed that Lee would sign with the Yankees as the Bombers would, as is their wont, offer the most money, by a long shot, and slide Lee in as the co-ace of the staff, alongside his friend and fellow former Cleveland Indian CC Sabathia.

Something unexpected happened on the way to the inevitable, however.

Lee accepted a five year, $100 million offer from the Phillies, thereby leaving left the Yankees, who had offered him a 7 year, $150 million contract, standing at the baseball alter, probably more stunned than angry.

After it sunk in, however, the Yankees immediately went into the spin cycle, actually expressing relief that they had missed out on the 31 year old lefthander. An unnamed Yankee official said, ""Anybody who would leave $50 million on the table obviously doesn't want to pitch in New York. Thank God we found out in time."

Even as a lifelong Yankee fan and as a died in the wool New Yorker, I find that quote incredibly arrogant.

As he is presumably set for life financially anyway, perhaps there are others things that matter to Cliff Lee than an extra $50 million. While I don't know the man, and while he likely will never get into molecular level details of all the reasons why he would rather pitch for the Phillies (some have said a family situation is a contributing factor), perhaps he would simply rather pitch for the Phillies, a team he pitched for already in 2009. Perhaps losing the 2009 World Series to, yes, the Yankees, left a bitter taste in his mouth and he wants redemption.

Perhaps Cliff Lee just enjoys the competition, and knows that the Phillies now have the best starting rotation in all of baseball, and not by a small margin.

There is an old saying that says, "When they say it's not about the money, it's all about the money."

Cliff Lee never said it was not about the money. But in spurning the Yankees, he has acted as if it not all about the money.

Source:

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2010/12/13/2010-12-13_yankees_and_rangers_continue_to_wait_on_cliff_lee_pitcher_to_decide_future_no_ea.html