New York? No Thankee

Spurning the Yankees and Rangers, free agent Ace Cliff Lee decided to
 return to Philadelphia today, inking a five-year, $120 million deal. 

Red Sox Nation dodged a serious bullet early this morning when word surfaced that the best left-hander in the game, Cliff Lee, had agreed to a five-year, $120 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies. Thank god. Anywhere but New York, which is where many baseball pundits had predicted he would land, especially after the eternally deep pocketed Evil Empire had offered him the most lucrative contract, reported to be for seven-years and $147 million.

Lee to the Yankees made a lot of sense for both sides, too. Lee would become the second-highest paid pitcher in the game and bring his talents to the largest market in the country on a team with incredibly rich history. On the other side, the Yankees truly needed Lee. With the Sox acquiring both Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford this offseason, Lee was supposed to be the Yankees equalizer, both on the field and off it, in terms of media buzz and the psychology of the rivalry. Red Sox fans felt as if Lee's arrival in Gotham City was imminent. I was even beginning to have nightmares about facing CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee four times or more in the 2011 ALCS.

Not so. Lee didn't even land with the widely perceived runner up, the Texas Rangers. After being traded from Seattle to Texas at the deadline last season, Lee single-handedly pitched the Rangers all the way to the World Series, which they eventually lost to the San Francisco Giants. In addition, it was widely held that Lee had become great friends with Rangers President and Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan. Just this past weekend Lee was spotted hunting on Ryan's expansive property in Texas. However, although reports had Texas offering Lee a six-year, $138 million deal, it appears Lee was upset that Texas failed to guarantee a seventh year. Or maybe he decided that the sweltering Texas heat wasn't something he wanted to deal with for the next six summers. 

Instead, Lee leaves an enormous amount of money on the table to return to the Phillies, the team he reached the World Series with in 2009, winning Games 1 and 5 against the Yankees. Overall, his postseason stats in 2009 for Philadelphia were staggering: 4-0, 1.56 ERA. In returning to Philadelphia, Lee's addition now gives the Phillies the best starting four in baseball: Lee, Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels. The Boston Celtics are no longer the only team in pro-sports with a "Big Four." 

There you have it. Unlike 95% of all professional athletes, Cliff Lee took less money to join a winner. I guess it's true, it is Always Sunny in Philadelphia. And for Sox fans, not only does the 2008 Cy Young Award Winner not join the Yankees but he also switches leagues. Somewhere, George Steinbrenner is spinning in his grave.