Traitor Tracker: .252

Traitor Tracker: .252
Last year, this date: .309

Monday, July 28, 2025

Yanks finally win a game in the "WHY DIDN'T YOU SIGN BRYCE HARPER!" series.

Well, it's over. The Phillies series. It's always fun, in a hurtful way. Every other year, we get to see what might've been. 

In our hearts, we can break into our most unifying cheer, hoping that, somehow, Food Stamps Hal Steinbrenner will hear...   

"WHY DIDN'T YOU SIGN BRYCE HARPER!"

It echoes across the Bronx. 

It relieves the bowels of our souls. 

It defines the Yankees in this millennium. 

"WHY DIDN'T YOU SIGN BRYCE HARPER!"

Since 2019, the year Harper came to us, seeking to fulfil his childhood dreams, it's the difference between zero Yankee world championships and - say - maybe three? Because if you add Harper's Hall of Fame lefty bat to the Yankee lineup - in front of or behind Aaron Judge - well, that's a championship team. That's the Dodgers. 

Add Harper to the Yankees and, over the last six years, the Canyon of Heroes looks like a much more traveled path. There is no Joey Gallo fiasco, no waiting on Luke Voit, no Rougned Odor, no endless stream of intentional passes to Aaron Judge. Imagine Harper as a Yankee in 2021 - adding 35 HRs and a .309 batting average to Judge's 39 and .285, a lefty-righty combo that would make Juan Soto the afterthought he deserves to be. Add one of the great clutch hitters of this era... well... close your eyes. Altogether, now:

'WHY DIDN'T YOU SIGN BRYCE HARPER?"

That winter, remember how Harper came to NYC, pleading for an offer? He grew up wanting to be a Yankee. It was huge in the Sports Illustrated cover article about him. He wanted to play in Yankee Stadium. He wanted to wear pinstripes. So what did Food Stamps do? He hid under his bed, didn't answer the phone, never offered a deal - terrified that if he did, Harper would accept. Then he did the same with Manny Machado, whose wife had grown un in NYC and wanted to return. Nope. Not interested.

Okay, let's note that Hal had just signed Gerrit Cole - another guy who grew up wanting to be a Yankee. But then, Hal just stopped. He had the money. He just chose not to spend it. So he kept the Yankees one star hitter away from greatness, which is where they have been ever since. 

One player away. That's the Yankees. The funny part is that Hal thought he was being frugal. Actually, he was being stupid. Harper will be paid $27 million this year. He's worth every penny. 

The Dodgers have no problem adding extra stars to powerhouse lineups. Think of Freddie Freeman and Shohei Otani. They refuse to accept being one key player away. 

The Yankees? Well, Hal is content to contend. Year after year, the Yankees are in the race - (in an expanded playoff system that rewards middle of the road mediocrity) - and year after year, they fall short. Spoiler alert: They will again this year. 

So, my friends, raise your eyes from this screen, fill your lungs with indignation, lift your voices and cut loose to the universe...

"WHY DIDN'T YOU SIGN BRYCE HARPER!"

42 comments:

HoraceClarke66 said...

"Content to contend"—oh, baby, I love it! They should write that on Hal's headstone. In fact, I intend to spray paint it there.

HoraceClarke66 said...

I was also thinking—watching the marvelous play that Realmuto made—why didn't we sign Realmuto? Or take the one-on-one trade for Sanchez that we were supposedly offered?...

HoraceClarke66 said...

...Every year, the list gets longer:
Why didn't we sign Corey Seager/ Freddie Freeman/ Josh Hader, etc., etc., etc.

But if Hal is NOT willing to spend more money, why the hell don't we have a GM who can recognize talent, and snap up the likes of J.T. Realmuto when offered?

Because...Hal is content to contend forever and ever. Building a great young team from the ground up? That only means money spent down the road.

13bit said...

I can't get no...I can't get no...I can't get no....no satisFACTTION...no satisFACTION....NO SATISFACTION....

AboveAverage said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
AboveAverage said...

So tired, tired of waiting
Tired of waiting for you
So tired, tired of waiting
Tired of waiting for you

Hal was a lonely soul
Hal had nobody till he met Pal
But They’re keeping us waiting, all of the time
What can WE do?

It's Hal’s life and he can do what he wants
Do what he likes
But please don't keep us waiting
Please don't keep us waiting

'Coz We’re so tired, tired of waiting
Tired of waiting for Hal
We’re so tired, tired of waiting
Tired of waiting for Hal

(And Hoss, please let me know when you’re going to spray paint that tombstone so I can have a crew there to document it…)

13bit said...

I'll get the crash cam footage

13bit said...

HAL - WE WANT - TO FIRE BOONE - ALL DAY AND ALL OF THE NIGHT

JM said...

Hal, Cashman, Boone. The Three Idiots of the Apocalypse.

Doug K. said...

Well it's kind of nice to have a third baseman who plays the field like a third baseman instead of a utility guy. One might ask, "Why didn't Brian make this trade in the off season?" But that would be too logical.

This new pattern of lose two games of a given series and win one has another name. It's called a .333 win percentage.

AboveAverage said...

everybody learns at their own "special" pace

JM said...

They can tie their shoes. +1

TheWinWarblist said...

I quote myself from December 28, 2018:

TheWinWarblist
WHERE'S MY BRYCE AND MY MANNY AND MY CORBIN, YOU REPREHENSIBLE FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! FUCKERS !!!! I KNOW YOU ARE COLLUDING TO KEEP DOWN SALARIES AND DENY ME MY BRYCE AND MY MANNY AND MY CORBIN, YOU DISEASED REPREHENSIBLE FUCKERS !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! FUCK YOU !!!! DON'T YOU DARE TRADE MY ANDUJAR OR MY RED THUNDER!!!! I WILL COME FOR YOU AND ALL YOUR PINHEADED MINIONS !!!!!!!!!


FUCKERS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
December 28, 2018 at 10:21 AM

TheWinWarblist said...

I hope you can all appreciate my measured reasoning.

BTR999 said...

Jack Curry sez

The Yankees have traded Carlos Carrasco to the Braves for a PTBNL or cash.

Just a smokescreen for the BIG deal

Rufus T. Firefly said...

Underappreciated group

Rufus T. Firefly said...

Vere reserved.

You're amongst friends here. Feel free to tell us all how you feel about them.

13bit said...

the BIG deal, or, as they say somewhere - BOHICA...

Joe Formerlyof Brooklyn said...

I believe the NYYs will acquire Bryce Harper. As soon as his elbows and/or knees blow out.

ranger_lp said...

Or Mike Trout...

Pocono Steve said...

Volpe is an asshole.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Hullo? Hullo? Anybody there? Is there a game thread? Cough, wheeze, brushes dust off his uniform. Syracuse, can you read me? Germany? Any place? Where is the game thread???

HoraceClarke66 said...

Pocono Steve! Glad you're here at least.

Tell me, in a question of Asian wisdom drawn from the Kung-Fu series...which is worse, grasshopper:

—Striking out on three pitches, the last one literally in the dirt as Failed Catcher of the Future Austin Wells did. OR...

—Striking out in four pitches (thanks to a ball that SHOULD have been a strike), with the last one a called strike fastball—as Volpe did next, dropping his .214 average even lower?

HoraceClarke66 said...

Oh, and why is it that Ian Hamilton is allowed to pitch still? Just asking for a friend.

13bit said...

Greenwich Village checking in, Hoss. That being said, I might be checking in from uptown by next season. I’ll fill you in at some other time. The village has just become destroyed by tech Bros and douche bags. Either way, we have another fine game going on at this moment, with timely hitting, sharp pitching, and great managing. Oh, but how lucky can we be?

HoraceClarke66 said...

Wow. The Rays' no, 9 hitter hits a high bouncer with men on first and second, that Weaver somehow fails to glove.

Michael Kay's call? "A chopper. In No-Man's Land. That's going to be a base hit."

No, it wasn't in "No-Man's Land," and it should not have been a hit. It was a routine grounder that Weaver was on, and failed to glove. It should be yet another critical, Yankees error. But now the cover-up is really on to hide just how awful this team is.

Hinkey Haines said...

Because Boone is a professional idiot.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Sorry, it was Hill who failed to glove it. Weaver was already out.

Hinkey Haines said...

RIP, Ryne Sandberg.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Oh my goodness. Boone pinch-hits Mets' washout Amed Rosario for Dominguez, who has two hits and a very good catch on the night. Yes, Rosario got a single. Wa-hoo. This is like pinch-hitting Andy Carey for a young Mickey Mantle. It's inane.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Was a shame to see the Sandberg died, at just 65.

BTR999 said...

Multiple shooting in Midtown. Gunman dead,

HoraceClarke66 said...

Huh, TB's reliever somehow manages to field the same sort of high chopper Hill could not. Oh, well.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Cantrun strikes out on a fastball down the pike.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Yanks with two singles since the first inning.

Hinkey Haines said...

I repeat, but this time with emphasis: BOONE IS A PROFESSIONAL IDIOT.

TheWinWarblist said...

Boone's idiocy is beyond question.

TheWinWarblist said...

10 PM, oil pressure sinking fast.

Pocono Steve said...

Pathetic and weak. Weakthetic!

Doug K. said...

Yankees bad.

Mildred Lopez said...

Managed to stagger all the way to the finish line with this slog of a game. I got to get a life.

BTR999 said...


Who wants more good news?

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/phillies-bryce-harper-reportedly-told-mlb-boss-rob-manfred-to-get-the-f-out-rather-than-talk-salary-cap/