David Roberston spent his first season as the closer for the New York Yankees after years as the team's setup man. He's now a free agent after he declined New York's one-year, $15.3 million qualifying offer and is reportedly seeking the largest contract for a relief pitcher.
That contract he wants was the one Philadelphia Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon signed in 2011. The right-hander inked a four-year, $50 million deal with a $13 million vesting option for 2016, which he'll likely fulfill because he only needs to appear in 15 games next season for it to kick in. This is a bold request from the 29-year-old Robertson, who has only 47 saves in his career.
Robertson was one of 12 free agents who was presented with the one-year, $15.3 million qualifying offer. If the right-hander accepted it he would have earned the highest annual salary for a relief pitcher in the history of baseball. However, he declined it and now has draft pick compensation tied to him, meaning if another team besides the Yankees signs him then they'll have to surrender their first round draft pick to New York. The fact that the Yankees have setup man Dellin Betances behind Robertson doesn't help his negotiating leverage with the team either.
Additionally, there's not high demand for expensive closers who have draft pick compensation tied to them, so it'll be interesting to see how this whole process plays out. Robertson converted 39 of 44 save attempts in 2014 with a 3.08 ERA and 1.05 WHIP and struck out 96 batters in 64 1/3 innings.
The Yankees will likely let him explore the free agent market because they have a number of other roster issues to solve, and an expensive closer isn't one of them. They still might have a shot to sign Robertson if no one on the open market will give him the money he wants, but in the meantime they're going to have to come up with a Plan B (which they probably already have). Left-hander Andrew Miller could be a great fallback.
Miller pitched for the Red Sox and Orioles in 2014 and amassed a 5-5 record with a 2.02 ERA and 0.80 WHIP in 62 1/3 innings. This was his breakout season after he struggled from 2006-2011. His numbers began to drastically improve in 2012 when he compiled a 3-2 record with a 3.35 ERA and 1.19 WHIP in 40 1/3 innings and then followed that up in 2013 with a 1-2 record to go along with a 2.64 ERA and 1.37 WHIP in 30 2/3 innings pitched. With this improvement, the 29-year-old thinks he's ready to close games and he's garnering interest from a number of teams. Could the Yankees join the mix?
"I think Andrew's evolution in the bullpen and his numbers this year fortify the belief in baseball that he's a closer-in-waiting -- and maybe the time for waiting is over,'' said Miller's agent, Mark Rodgers, via this ESPN article.
