The agreement of Luis Severino worked for him but maybe not for all the players

TAMPA – All baseball activities these days are accompanied by a bunch of scandals and scruples.

If Luis Severino had been in position, two years ago, to sign the exact extension he had made on Friday with the Yankees, some agents might have called for privileged journalists to moan that the pitcher was under-sold and that two websites mentioned it. advantages and disadvantages.

But mostly, the information came and went like spring training sessions at the bat – here, then poof.

But Bryce Harper's and Manny Machado's off-season not having signed, she bled in spring training. Two dozen viable major leagues remain without a contract, a second category of autonomous players having suffered a collective freeze. Veteran players have taken the microphone and Twitter to express their fury and promise an account day to come.

So Severino's $ 40 million four-year contract with a 2023 team option is not going well. It is being dissected and disseminated in the midst of the upsurge in labor unrest, such as the agreement signed earlier this week by Aaron Nola of Philadelphia, which created a framework for the Severino deal. One of the main issues raised is whether players are now more open to team-friendly deals because free will has become a less reliable cash cow.

And there is a trade union disadvantage, because what is best for the players can be very different from what benefits a particular player the most. The group could use Nola and Severino from year to year in the hope of remaining high-end aces, pushing the limits of arbitrage and earning free money as soon as possible.

Severino, however, must independently weigh the risk and the reward.

He comes from humble means. Not later than in 2016, it was first banned to minors, then to the market. A few months ago, he stumbled on the field and playoffs amid a blitz of concern about low turns, the quality of his third pitch and his physical stamina. Last year, no skilled player launched his fastball with higher average speed and few players cast their sliders as hard or as frequently as the right-handed player.

Severino could have risen up against considerations of his past and the potential for health problems. By being just good and healthy (not even terrific) over the next four years, Severino could have outperformed the $ 40 million guarantee and achieve free agency status a year earlier. The disadvantage was losing arbitration ($ 4.4 million) and getting hurt to the point of no longer having an increase in 2020, or about $ 8.8 million over the course of the year. next two years, with a mystery beyond.

Severino has chosen a generational wealth guarantee rather than playing every year to exceed this threshold, while perhaps helping to set new financial benchmarks for players. His contract guarantees $ 5 million less than the $ 45 million granted by Nola over four years, but Severino is more supportive.

Despite similar statistics, Nola was a class of services in front of Severino. It was therefore submitted to three years of arbitration. Thus, his four-year contract with a club option covers two years as a free agent. Severino was confronted with four years of arbitration and thus potentially yielding a year of control to the Yankees' free agents. If the options are chosen, the Nola self-player will come after his 30-year-old season, Severino's after 29 years, because the clubs are more than ever free.

With this option, Severino would pocket $ 52.25 million over five years and, if health and performance allowed, still had another lucrative payday. This has exceeded the potential impact on other players. Also, keep in mind that five to seven major agencies represent the majority of players and that smaller representatives are more likely to enter into these first deals, fearing that their clients and potential commissions will be ceded to the task.

The Yankees are also at risk – but not enough to defy potential rewards. If Severino misses a considerable amount of time to hurt himself or lose significantly of his performance, it will be an overpayment, but not an overpayment Jacoby Ellsbury. For the time being – because the average value is what matters for luxury taxation – Severino has reached $ 10 million rather than the result of his arbitration and the projected payroll has risen from $ 215 million to $ 220 million. The certainty of averaging and costs becomes a considerable advantage for the team over time, as Severino's contract would likely have inflated as a result of an arbitration.

The agreement also prevented parties from attending a scheduled hearing on Friday – a controversial hearing that took place two years ago left Dellet Betances and the Yankees in an uncomfortable place.

In addition, the Yankees have learned that players who have shown themselves to be comfortable and able to flourish in New York – especially when they were at home – have increased their value. Comfort also works both ways. Severino told me the other day that he only wanted to play for one team. He signed a contract on Friday that made it a little more possible. It was a good deal for this player, but maybe not for all players.