Soriano gets 3yr/$35MM from Yankees

     In a day where relievers, and pitchers in general are throwing harder than ever with an even lower lifespan, the Yankees went out and spent big dollars on Rafael Soriano early this morning. The deal is worth a reported 3 years at $35MM in total contract value (plus some incentives I am sure). Immediately there was a bit of harsh reaction over the deal, and understandably so. Relievers don't live up to the multiple year deals that they frequently get when teams become desperate and/or victims of the current market. The Yankees front office can blame Detroit for the commitment they had to make to land Soriano. And although there is no chance he lives up to the full value of the contract, he acquisition has some implications that have become more and more obvious to even casual fans. The loss of a first round pick in the deepest draft in ages is a sign that the Yankees have no regard for getting the player they want.

     Although the deal is a bad one, it's not quite as bad as other writers have made it out to be. The easiest comparison I can make is Jonathan Papelbon. He is set to hit he open market next off season, and chances are that he will have a large check coming his way from some club. The Soriano deal will probably be the benchmark, but chances are his agent will push for more due to a healthy and successful track record. However, if you could pick between the two of them, who would you choose? I would pick Soriano. He has better stuff, he's shown he can transition from one league to another and have success in both. When he is healthy, he is flat-out dominant. Papelbon has shown a regression over the past two seasons in my opinino and scouting. His secondary stuff has never been above average, even below average. None of them lack depth or have particularly late movement. So in reality, if Soriano stays relatively healthy we may look back at the deal and think that the Yankees got a decent deal in the end. The easiest way of puting it is this: For the amount of dollars/years you are spending on depth guys and guys below the quality of Soriano, you must ask yourself (if you have the resources) how hard it is to get impact guys at the end of the bullpen. Soriano could easily close for NYY, and is probably an upgrade on 90% of closers presently in the position on other teams. Regardless of his title, he will provide solid innings and has shutdown stuff. The Yankees just told teams in the AL East that they have 7 innings to beat them.