The Yankees finally landed a former Cy Young winner this winter, just not the one they really wanted.
Bartolo Colon signed a minor league deal with the team and received an invitation to spring training, giving him the chance to prove he deserves to be on the major league squad. Colon, the 2005 AL Cy Young winner, has not pitched in the big leagues in two years.
After getting spurned by Cliff Lee, their top free-agent pitching target, the Yankees have been checking out every pitching possibility left on the market. The problem is that anyone still left on the market has something wrong, which explains why they have been available this long.
The Yankees view Colon as a cheap, low-risk signing. If he nabs a spot on the major league team, he’ll earn $900,000. Colon has the right to be released at the end of spring training if he is not in The Bronx. The best-case scenario for the Yankees is he makes the team out of spring training and gives them a reliable No. 5 starter until one of their prospects is ready or they make a trade. That is a long shot, though.
The 37-year-old has dealt with weight and injury issues since winning the Cy Young with the Angels in 2005. He went 21-8 with a 3.48 ERA that season. Since then, he’s a combined 14-21 with a 5.18 ERA in 48 games with the Angels, Red Sox and White Sox.
Colon did not pitch at all last year after being unable to land a job. The White Sox released him in the middle of the 2009 season when he struggled with several injuries.
The Yankees liked what they saw from Colon in the Dominican League this winter, where he pitched for Yankees bench coach Tony Pena. Colon went 2-1 with a 1.93 ERA in the Dominican League. He had 28 strikeouts and six walks.
brian.costello@nypost.com
— Additional reporting by Joel Sherman