INDIANAPOLIS — The Yankees claimed Andy Pettitte was their No. 1 offseason priority. And they have put their money where that statement is at while continuing to monitor the Roy Halladay market.
Pettitte was the first and only player the Yankees have made an offer to since the World Series ended, The Post has learned. The proposal was for one year in what was believed to be the $10 million range or about what Pettitte made in 2009 between base salary and bonuses.
The initial offer was not accepted, but an NL official who had spoken to an involved party insisted the deal will get done, and privately the Yankees believe Pettitte wants to pitch in The Bronx in 2010.
His return would leave the Yankees in a less stressed position when it comes to obtaining another starter. If he returns, the Yankees probably will not pursue the top free-agent starter available, John Lackey. But they could try to do a one-year deal with a physical reclamation project such as Justin Duchscherer, Ben Sheets and possibly even the chronically injured Rich Harden if he were willing to do a one-year contract.
Having Pettitte re-join CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett would allow the Yankees to more comfortably let Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes fill the Nos. 4-5 spots, with Ian Kennedy, Chad Gaudin, Alfredo Aceves and Sergio Mitre for depth.
At that point the only other big-ticket starter who could entice them would be Halladay. And one item several Yankees officials already have cited is that they feel a good working relationship has been formed between their front office and new Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos.
The Yankees have at the least expressed initial interest and told the Blue Jays to stay in touch if they intensify efforts to trade their ace. The sides have yet to exchange proposals. But conversations between subordinates have left the Yankees with the impression that they have prospects Toronto likes a great deal (think Jesus Montero and Austin Jackson).
The key elements in a trade for Halladay are:
1. How many prospects does Toronto want?
At the July 31 trade deadline, the Blue Jays were asking for three high-end prospects. But J.P. Ricciardi was the general manager then and Halladay, a free agent after the 2010 season, was available to impact two pennant races rather than one. One AL executive said Anthopoulos “has a more realistic view” of the process, which translates to asking for fewer high-end guys.
2. Do the Yankees have a real budget?
They left organizational meetings last week committed to a sub-$200 million payroll. But they have said that before only to be tempted by a pretty toy they had to have (see Teixeira, Mark).
If they really are committed to staying under $200 million and Pettitte returns in the $10 million range, it would be hard to have Halladay and an expensive left fielder such as Johnny Damon.
3. Halladay is due a very reasonable (considering his talent) $16 million in 2010. There have been Yankees officials who believe the wise path is to obtain Halladay, but not sign him long-term. The Yankees could then see him pitch in his age-33 season before deciding to sign him long-term or let him leave as a free agent and receive two compensation draft picks to help offset some of the prospect cost to get Halladay.
But Halladay has a no-trade provision and it always is possible that he demands an extension to agree to go to a new place.
4. Just how serious is GM Brian Cashman?
It is possible he will keep the idea of Yankees interest alive simply to make sure another AL contender such as the Red Sox or Angels pays a higher price in a trade.
In the past, Cashman’s philosophy has been that you don’t trade prospects and then approve a huge, long-term contract. That kept him from authorizing a trade for Johan Santana and, instead, waiting a year to just use money to secure Sabathia. In this case, the Yankees might be able to get Halladay for just the prospects and the one-year at $16 million.