Sabathia’s days with Indians may be numbered

The 27-year-old pitcher is eligible for free agency after the 2008 season.

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (AP) — The cold, hard reality is that C.C. Sabathia’s days with the Cleveland Indians could be dwindling.

At this time next year, Sabathia could be somewhere else, pitching for somebody other than the only team he has ever known.

“I can’t think like that,” Sabathia said after a brisk workout on Tuesday morning. “I don’t want to go through the season thinking this will be my last year. I want to help my guys here win.”

Last week, the AL’s reigning Cy Young winner shelved talks on a contract extension with the Indians, who were hoping to sign their ace left-hander this spring and avoid possibly losing him as a free agent.

Sabathia, who is eligible for free agency after the 2008 World Series, announced his decision to put off the talks until after the season on his Web site — one that until recently he didn’t know even existed.

The 27-year-old Californian considers Cleveland his second home. The Indians drafted him with their top pick in 1998, and three years later, after zooming through their farm system (he bypassed Triple-A) he won 17 games as a rookie.

Now, he’s the cornerstone of their staff, and arguably the face of Cleveland’s franchise. Leaving would be hard.

“Everybody knows how I feel about this place and this organization and the city,” said Sabathia, speaking for the first time this spring about his contract status. “I’ve been here since I was 17 years old.”

At the end of December, the Indians offered Sabathia, who has a 100-63 career mark, a four-year extension believed to be worth between $17 million and $18 million per year. He’s represented by Legacy Sports Group.

Sabathia said the two sides never got close to a deal.

“The Indians sent a proposal,” he said. “We couldn’t get any common ground on it. Coming into spring training I want to focus on the team and not make it a distraction. I’ve seen it be a distraction for guys in this clubhouse [who have negotiated contracts in spring training] and I don’t want it to be that way for me, so I decided to put it on the shelf.”

Sabathia went 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA and led the majors with 241 innings in 2007, becoming Cleveland’s first Cy Young winner since Gaylord Perry in 1972.

He’s trying to go about his business in spring training in the usual fashion. On Tuesday, he threw off a mound for 15 minutes, lifted weights, ran sprints under the warm Florida sun, got stretched by a trainer and iced his left shoulder.

He’d like to keep the contract situation as far away as possible, even though his situation could change if he has a sub-par season or is injured.

“I haven’t been losing any sleep over it,” Sabathia said. “That’s why I put the statement out and went about it the way I did. There won’t be any pressure.”

Sabathia hopes Cleveland fans understand he’s made a business decision.

“I put my heart on the line my whole career,” he said. “I wouldn’t expect the fans would react negatively.”

Sabathia signed a three-year extension early in the 2005 season. Most of those negotiations took place during spring training and distracted him.

“It was horrible,” said Sabathia, who will make $11.2 million this season. “I was on the phone with my agent all night. I wasn’t getting any sleep. I didn’t want to go through that [again].”

To have any chance of keeping Sabathia, the Indians may have to approach the six-year, $137.5 million contract the New York Mets gave Johan Santana after his recent trade from Minnesota.

Sabathia maintains Santana’s contract won’t affect his own situation.

“I really can’t comment on his terms,” Sabathia said. “The guy is unbelievable. He won the Cy Young twice. I’m glad he’s out of my division. I’m glad I don’t have to pitch against him.”

Sabathia doesn’t anticipate anything changing his mind about delaying talks and added if the Indians make an offer to his agents during the season he doesn’t want to know about it.

Asked why he and his agents decided to put his statement on the Internet, Sabathia joked, “So you guys [reporters] would click on my Web site.”

Notes

Manager Eric Wedge’s wife, Kate, gave birth to a son, Dalton Cash, on Monday at Fairview Hospital in Cleveland. Wedge is expected for today’s workout. The couple also have a 1-year-old daughter. ... OF David Dellucci, who missed the last four months of 2007 with a torn hamstring, reported to camp. ... Position players will have physicals today with the first full-squad workout Thursday.