Yankees need to avoid making a mess of Luis Severino’s arbitration

The Yankees would be wise to avoid a repeat of the 2017 Dellin Betances arbitration mess with their No. 1 starter Luis Severino.

With Yankees pitchers and catchers officially reporting to Spring Training on Wednesday, a slight level of uncertainty surrounds Luis Severino.

Although manager Aaron Boone stated that Sevvy would likely be his Opening Day starter on March 28 against the Orioles (no surprise there), the 24-year-old right-hander still has yet to agree to a contract for the 2019 season.

Now in the hands of an arbitrator, the Yankees are offering $4.4 million while Severino’s representatives are hoping for $5.25 million.

Pennywise and dollar foolish, I have a hard time understanding why the Yanks are willing to put any potential strain on the relationship with their top-flight pitcher that has yet to reach his ceiling — in this, his first season of arbitration eligibility.

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Though the Yankees don’t typically buyout remaining arbitration years, let alone re-sign players until their original contracts have expired, they could save themselves a large chunk of change now, as opposed to waiting until 2022 when Sevvy reaches free agency. According to owner Hal Steinbrenner, the Yanks have already eclipsed the $220M payroll mark for 2019, so saving money for a rainy day isn’t an excuse.

In a similar vein, the Phillies came to a four-year, $48 million extension with their staff ace Aaron Nola on Wednesday. With all three arbitration years and his first season of free agency now purchased, Philadelphia understands should Nola, 25, continue on his current trajectory, he’s an absolute steal.

Nola, who is coming off a 17-6 record with a 2.37 ERA in 33 starts while finishing third in the NL Cy Young race in ’18, was asking for $6.75M. The Phils offered $4.5M.

I think a similar compromise for the Yanks and Severino would be plenty fair, as Jon Heyman reports the two sides have spoken about an extension but are yet to make any headway.

Some $850k apart regarding arbitration, Severino told NJ.com he understands it’s a business move but is still hoping to avoid a Betances-Levine situation.

"“For it to happen like that … it doesn’t have to be like that. You don’t have to go to the press.”“I hear it’s not a good experience, but at the end of the day this is a job, so they’re going to do anything they can to save some money,” Severino said. “I understand that. If I win or lose, at the end of the day, I’ll come here to pitch.”"