Via the AP -

Joe Girardi said this week he’d enjoy showing free agents around the new Yankee Stadium. CC Sabathia is one of the players the New York manager has in mind for a tour of the spacious clubhouse, players lounge, indoor batting cage and underground hot tub.

Free-agent season opened Friday with the Yankees planning to give Sabathia a record offer for a pitcher.

Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner confirmed Friday night at the team’s spring training complex in Tampa, Fla., that an offer was made to Sabathia, and that proposals will be forthcoming for pitchers A.J. Burnett and Derek Lowe.

“Yes,” Steinbrenner said when asked if an offer was made to Sabathia. “And we’re prepared to make offers to Burnett and Lowe.”

The Yankees formulated a proposal to the big lefty that would exceed Johan Santana’s $137.5 million, six-year contract with the New York Mets both in total and average, a baseball official familiar with the negotiations said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to divulge details.

Steinbrenner declined to give details about the Sabathia offer.

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman and Greg Genske, one of Sabathia’s agents, did not return telephone calls seeking comment.

Steinbrenner said he felt the Yankees will be successful in the free-agent market.

“I’m starting to become very optimistic,” Steinbrenner said. “I think it’s going to be mutually beneficial to us and for these particular players that we’re after for them to join the Yankees.”

Ah, when the music’s over…

The image of Hank Stein wearing leather pants and proclaiming himself to be the Lizard King is somewhat disturbing , no?

In any event, what happens if Sabathia, Burnett and Lowe all pass on those Yankee dollars?

Let’s just hope that the Yankees braintrust’s answer to that is not: Ooh, I never thought of that.