it's time (to move on)

first, thanks for october 18th (pictured right). wow. no words.

the teams in the race: all along we knew about the rangers & the yankees but the phillies, who seem to have come out of nowhere at the last possible moment. reports of them surfaced only late afternoon.

the lee recent background: lee was a hired gun in 2009 for the phillies & got them to the world series against the yankees. he beat them in both starts that series. he also was a hired gun for the rangers (rangers trading prize prospect justin smoak to seattle in the deal but well worth it, they made the world series) last season guiding them to their first american league pennant (past the yankees) & world series in franchise history. he has never pitched for the yankees ONLY beaten them EVERY time he's faced them, so they badly wanted to sign him & get him on their side.

the contracts: phillies 5 years $120 million ( with a vesting option that could bring it to 6

& 135). yankees 6 years $135 million (with a player option to bring it to 7 & 148). the rangers went 6 years & 138 million (with a vesting option that could have made it 7 & 161).

the winner: the phillies. it wasn't about the money. he went where his heart told him to go. not that he didn't have a great time here. he could have gone to be with his good friend c.c. sabathia in pinstripes. but in the end his heart told him his best chance to win was in a phillies uniform. so the phillies rotation sets up like a murders row of pitching (roy halladay, cliff lee, roy oswalt & cole hamels) their catcher carlos ruiz is the luckiest catcher in baseball next season.

but thanks, clifton.

thanks for the greatest four & a half baseball months of my life. your precision & artistry & the way you pitched.

thanks for october 6.

thanks for october 12. your han solo cool of that walk towards bengie molina & everything that happened in the game that led up to it (first playoff series win in history for rangers.)

thanks for doing your part to make my team, the rangers, a world series team. i wanted you back in a rangers uniform but the dollars & years that the bidding had gone to scared me. but in the end when the offers got as crazy as they did, it became more about the yankees NOT getting you than the rangers GETTING you. you caught everyone looking at strike three as you instigated talks with the phillies because it's there you really wanted to return. despite every indication you loved texas & your teammates, it wasn't enough. i don't blame you & i'm okay with it. really even calm. it stinks, no doubt but some of the rangers brass had to be thinking what a bad contract this would be if you had signed. i'm okay with this until i see what the rangers do next.

now the yankees need to figure out plan b. they tried to get you at the trade deadline & now planning their whole offseason with getting you have whiffed again. but i don't care about that.
the rangers weren't caught unprepared by this & really NO player the rangers besides you have come off the free agent market. zach greinke (pitchers, royals) & matt garza (pitcher, rays) could be had by trade. the rangers will check in on josh johnson (pitcher, marlins) as well. if any trade is made they can replenish the farm system by getting the two picks by losing you to FA.

the rangers will have more money now or at the trade deadline.

i know i love how aggressive the rangers new ownership is going forward.

i love clifton lee. there's never been a pitcher like you in texas, & there's never been a season in texas like 2010, which without you would have ended sooner. it will stand as the greatest baseball reward i've ever had. there's NOTHING like the first trip to the world series, win or lose. i got to go to game three, the rangers only victory of the series, with my father who taught me the great game & my brother.

for that, clifton lee, let me just say, once again:

thank you. it was time.