When the Philadelphia Phillies sent Cliff Lee to Seattle in order to make room for Rory Halladay, I shook my head. I couldn't understand the concept of sending a No. 1 starter and picking up another one.
Lee was not ecstatic to realize the team he helped to the World Series had the door open for him with his hat in their hand.
So much for gratitude, eh?
He is currently with his third team in less than a year. The Phillies obviously rented him from Cleveland in the middle of last season.
Coming off his Cy Young win in 2008, Lee was less than stellar in his 2009 season. After the 22-8 season he was 7-9 with the Tribe before they decided to dump him.
He had a 7-4 mark with the Phillies and was excellent in the post-season going 2-0 in the playoffs and winning Games One and Five of the World Series.
He pitched his first spring training game with the Mariners yesterday going three innings and giving up five hits and one earned run with a strikeout.
The Seattle brain trust has not made arrangements to talk contract with the lanky southpaw.
Cliff said he has been there long enough to realize he could be comfortable with the club. "It didn't take me long to realize that it's good people here and a good organization here," he said after his three innings against Texas. "In free agency, you don't get a chance to spend time with the team and the guys to see if you're going to like it."
Lee went on to say that if nothing was settled prior to opening day he would not be willing to negotiate a contract until after the season when he would become a free agent.
"...If I sign here, great, and if that doesn't work out and I become a free agent, that's good, too. It's a win-win situation..."
Lee's philosophical comment leads me to believe he won't have his boxes unpacked any time soon.
This article also appears in A Sports Moment
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