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The reunion that made too much sense not to happen finally did Saturday when free agent CC Sabathia agreed to a one-year, $10 million contract with the Yankees, a source confirmed.
The deal is contingent on the left-hander passing his physical.
Re-signing the 37-year-old Sabathia, respected and beloved in all corners of the Yankees clubhouse, was targeted quickly as an offseason priority.
That was the case even before the Yankees were turned down by Japanese pitcher/outfielder Shohei Ohtani earlier this offseason. Once they were — the 23-year-old Ohtani chose the Angels — bringing Sabathia back into the fold became even more pressing.
And even with the addition of Sabathia, the Yankees will still explore opportunities to add one more starter to a group that, as of now, includes Luis Severino, Masahiro Tanaka, Sonny Gray, Jordan Montgomery and Sabathia. Prospects Justus Sheffield and Chance Adams are among the young arms who are slated to make a push this spring.
After going 18-26 with a 4.42 ERA in the previous three seasons and battling issues with his right knee, Sabathia turned back the clock this past season. While not entirely recapturing the form that made him an ace much of his career, Sabathia was mostly terrific, going 14-5 with a 3.69 ERA, his lowest ERA since 2012, when it was 3.38.
Sabathia went 1-1, 2.37 in four postseason outings, including Game 7 of the ALCS against the Astros when he was wild over 31/3 innings (he threw 36 strikes and 29 balls) but allowed just one run.
Afterward, Sabathia left no doubt where he wanted to pitch in 2018.