WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Carlos Beltran and Brian McCann still have Dellin Betances’ back in a big way even though they are no longer Yankees.
“Dellin was our MVP I felt like for three straight years,’’ McCann told The Post Sunday at the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. “I love him.’’
Noted Beltran of the 6-foot-8, 265-pounder, “Betances would do whatever it takes to help the team win. I saw him over the years sometimes when he had like a stiff arm and a lot of guys would have just said, ‘You know what, my arm is stiff, I’m not to put myself out there today,’ but Dellin was always willing to put his health on the line for the team — to try and win a game.
“As a teammate, I really appreciate that.’’
Beltran signed a one-year, $16 million deal with the Astros. The Yankees traded McCann to Houston in November because of the emergence of catcher Gary Sanchez.
“There’s a lot of talent here,’’ McCann said of the Astros.
Both former Yankees clubhouse leaders believe Betances will rise above hard feelings created Saturday when Yankees president Randy Levine accused Betances’ agent, Jim Murray, of using Betances as a pawn to change the arbitration process, wanting closer money.
Those comments caused Betances to reconsider how he is being used.
McCann and Beltran believe, in the end, Betances will do what Joe Girardi asks. They also understand why Betances is upset. Betances was asking for $5 million and lost the arbitration hearing and will be paid $3 million.
Then Levine’s comments stoked the flames.
McCann said even though Betances did all the things a team considers important, getting important outs before the ninth inning, the arbitration process did not see it that way.
“That’s just not right,’’ the catcher said.
McCann makes a strong point. You get financially rewarded for saves, but not for bridge outs the team considers vital.
“Dellin is a super great guy so he is going to be fine,’’ Beltran said. “I talked to him [Saturday], just to encourage him. I told him that I was part of that process also in my career. It got me to understand a lot of things in baseball, it’s a business, but at the end of the day, the organization is not going to wish him wrong. They want him to be as good and they have to wish him well because he is so valuable to that ballclub.
“The process is tough because you hear so many negative things about you and you start asking yourself, ‘Man, these people are on my side?’
“It’s good that you go through it early in your career, though, so you understand it more.’’
Betances did the dirty work, the heart and soul of a bullpen that last season included Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman. Over the last three years, Betances averaged 72 appearances as he pitched to a 1.93 ERA and struck out a whopping 392 batters over 247 innings and was named to the AL All-Star team each of those years. Over that span Betances collected only 22 saves.
“Dellin is a gamer,’’ Beltran said. “I consider pitchers like him, CC [Sabathia], Miller and Chapman, players that you don’t see every day. They are like: ‘Give me the ball, I’ll go out there and give you the best I can.’
“We all have pride and Dellin will do what he has to do because of that pride. He will rise above. He will get his work done and do it no matter what. He is so humble and so down to earth even though he is one of the best relievers in the game. He makes people feel so comfortable around him. He’s a smart kid, he knows what gives him success and will strengthen his routine every year. He has the right mentality because he always wants to get better.
“He’s going to be great, he’s going to do a great job for the Yankees.’’
Just as Betances has done each of his last three “MVP’’ seasons.
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