Sabathia: Betances learned business side of the game

As one of the elder statesmen on the suddenly youthful New York Yankees, CC Sabathia made sure to talk with Dellin Betances on Saturday, one of the toughest days in the majors for the 28-year-old reliever.

Betances endured - and lost - a tension-filled arbitration hearing that was made worse when Yankees president Randy Levine openly said Betances' resume didn't deserve the $5 million the player requested, also labeling the ask a "half-baked attempt" by his agent, Jim Murray, to manipulate the market.

"Yeah (he was angry), and I knew he would be," Sabathia told reporters, according to Erik Boland of Newsday. "It's just one of those things where at some point, I think, every player learns the business side of the game, whether it's early in your career or later in your career, and he learned that lesson early in his career."

Betances was in his first year of arbitration eligibility and will earn $3 million this season after receiving $507,500 in 2016.

Despite the friction, Betances said he's won't carry a grudge into the season, and Sabathia believes his teammate will come to camp completely committed.

"Dellin's a guy that will do anything for the team to win, so I'm not really worried about his role going forward," Sabathia said. "I think he'll be fine."