Yankees: Struggling To Deal With No-Show Dellin Betances

The Yankees confirmed that a member of their prized bullpen missed Tuesday’s report date for pitchers and catchers. While this development is not a total shock to the organization, it is another indication that this player might not yet be ready for prime time.

Yankees starting pitcher, Dellin Betances, was a no-show when Spring Training camp opened for pitchers and catchers on Tuesday. Betances, who has an arbitration hearing set for Friday, remains the team’s lone contract holdout and is not expected in camp until the hearing is completed.

A big league ballclub shouldn’t have to hand-hold a 29-year old man, especially when there are more than adequate replacements to get the job done.

The two sides are roughly two million dollars apart and, at this late date, an agreement is not likely to be reached, especially given Betances’ decision to remain away from the team. Manager Joe Girardi became the Yankees front person yesterday and attempted to put a spin on the situation explaining to the New York Daily News:

“If I feel that it does affect him, I will talk to him,” Girardi said Tuesday. “Obviously, this is the part of the game that somewhat becomes public and sometimes can be frustrating for both sides. You have to be able to move on.“When you sign up for this game, it becomes not only a game that you love and you fight and do everything you can to win, but it’s also a business, and you have to balance that. Once he gets through his arbitration case, we’re going to have to put that business behind and move on and focus on the game. Sometimes there can be hard feelings, but that’s something we’ll deal with.”

Girardi’s hesitancy in declaring that Betances is positively affected by his contract battle (“If I feel that it does affect him….”) could be looked on as yet another indication that the manager himself is out of touch with reality and, more importantly, with his players.

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After all, actions speak louder than words and Betances decision to not report on Tuesday confirms the fact that the arbitration process is weighing heavily on the 29-year old. Moreover, Girardi saying that he will talk to Betances is too late in the process.

Joe Maddon, for instance, would have been on the phone with Betances last week, not tomorrow, to explain what Girardi so eloquently explained to reporters yesterday, but (significantly) not to Betances directly.

Dellin Betances continues to give the Yankees every indication that he is not quite ready for prime time in the big leagues, at least in New York. Next month, he turns 29, an age when he should be entering the prime of his career instead of still sputtering to get his career off the ground.

For their part, the firm stance taken by the Yankees in negotiations with Betances is telling. $2 million is pocket change for the organization, and they could have relaxed and split the difference, or given him the whole amount. But to their credit, the team has not done so, and they appear to be on firm ground in deciding that Betances has not proven himself to be worth $5 million.

A more mature person might, for example, have made an appearance, asked to speak with Girardi or someone in the front office, and asked to be excused for a few days.

But instead, we appear to be dealing with someone whose head has not quite caught up with his body. At this point, it hardly matters which way the arbitration hearing goes. The damage has been done.

And regardless of how brilliant Betances has been at times, a big league ballclub shouldn’t have to hand-hold a 29-year old man, especially when there are more than adequate replacements to get the job done.

Noticeably, any mention of Betances’ absence is missing on the Yankees Website as of this writing.

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A brutal assessment? Perhaps, but that’s the business of baseball. And ballplayers with excuses need not apply.