In the winter of 2001, John Smoltz felt a bit frustrated and decided to reach out to his agent with some clear intentions regarding the Yankees.
“I told him, ‘Call the Yankees and say I’m interested,'” Smoltz recalled during a chat with Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman.
Yet, his agent reassured former Braves executive John Schuerholz that he would circle back to the Braves before anything was finalized.
Ultimately, those last-minute negotiations tipped the scales in favor of keeping Smoltz in Atlanta just as he was about to join the Yankees, who had just lost to the Diamondbacks in Game 7 of the World Series. He remarked, “It was such a close call.”
This situation is reminiscent of a notable free agent miss for the Yankees involving Smoltz’s old teammate Greg Maddux, making Smoltz’s decision a fascinating “what if” from the early 2000s, especially considering how it could have changed things for both teams.
After starting every game through 1999, the Braves moved Smoltz to a relief role for the 2001 season as he was recovering from Tommy John surgery. He acted as the closer for the final weeks, securing 10 saves.
When offseason came around, Smoltz hoped to return to starting but the Braves preferred to keep him as a closer. They valued his services at three years and $21 million, which felt a bit low to him.
On the flip side, the Yankees saw him as a starting pitcher. Gene Michael, their vice president of professional scouting at the time, pitched a four-year, $52 million deal, which Smoltz indicated was a more favorable offer.
“Things weren’t going smoothly in Atlanta,” he said. “I felt we were miles apart.”
But, Atlanta had one significant advantage: Smoltz’s strong desire to stay there. While he took pay cuts during his tenure with the Braves, he was a bit more concerned this time around, feeling the financial gap was too wide.
Eventually, the Braves upped their contract to $30 million over three years, and Smoltz chose to accept. He expressed a desire to earn around $9.15 million that season, wanting to be paid comparably to Mariano Rivera, who was set to make higher amounts annually from 2002 to 2004.
“Mariano Rivera is the best in the game. No one compares,” he noted, adding that he didn’t want to be seen as lower in value. It wasn’t about arrogance; it was more about his preference to not be viewed merely as a closer.
“In the end, we figured it out just as time ran out,” he summarized.
Smoltz continued as Atlanta’s closer through that contract, shifting back to a starting role in 2005 and remaining with the Braves until 2008. He wrapped up his career with the Cardinals and Red Sox in 2009.
Meanwhile, the Yankees went on to sign veteran pitcher David Wells that offseason, along with first baseman Jason Giambi.
