CC Sabathia has just one piece of advice for his friend Robinson Cano as the Yankees second baseman navigates free-agent waters for the first time.
“Stay here,” Sabathia said Friday. “I’ve played with him five years now and I think he’s the best second baseman in the game. Obviously he is one of my dear friends, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens.”
The ace lefty said he didn’t enjoy free agency five years ago, when he departed the Brewers for a $161 million contract from the Yankees — the uncertainty surrounding the uprooting his young family was unappealing, he said — and hopes Cano has more fun with the process than he did.
Cano could receive a $200 million deal and remains the focal point of what likely will be a busy offseason for the Yankees, who missed the playoffs for only the second time in 19 years.
Sabathia, speaking at the Luxe Lounge at Lucky Strike in Manhattan to promote a scavenger hunt through Central Park on Saturday to benefit his PitCCh in Foundation, said he’s onboard if the Yankees want him to recruit free agents this offseason.
“I’m down for recruiting,” he said. “I want to win. It’s hard to watch the Red Sox win the World Series this year, and you want to be in that spot, so whatever you’ve got to do to get the guys come play is what you’ve got to do.”
Andy Pettitte’s retirement has left a gaping hole in the Yankees’ rotation, and Sabathia has another native Texan in mind to replace him.
“Nolan Ryan,” Sabathia said jokingly, when asked what pitcher the Yankees should pursue.
“We’ve got some spots open and hopefully some of these young kids can step up, but we’re going to have to go out and look for some new guys.”
Sabathia, who missed his final start of the regular season with a left hamstring injury, said he working out at full strength and hasn’t encountered any setbacks this offseason.
Sabathia also said he will use his disappointing numbers from 2013 – he was 14-13 with a 4.78 ERA — as a motivational tool heading into spring training.
“It will never be behind me entirely,” he said. “Some of that, what happened last year will drive me to hopefully be better in the future. Keeping that back there will help, not getting too comfortable and working, trying to get better and watching video, just trying to get better in every way and I think last year was a good reminder of that.”