One day into Yankee camp, let us ponder our 10 great fears

Throughout U.S. history, the state of the Yankees has always mirrored that of our nation. You can look it up. 

Vietnam/Horace Clarke. 

Watergate/Otto Velez. 

Great Recession/Sidney Ponson. 

As for 2026? Yikes. The midterms. ICE. Epstein. The debt. The Melania movie on streaming. Max Shuelmann...  

Ten reasons to fear the State of the Yankees.

1. The simple problem with returning last year's roster: You also rerun the reasons why that team failed. 

2. They have ignored the biggest problem: Shortstop. For three seasons, Anthony Volpe has shat the bed. Apparently, around late May, they'll conjure him up for one more try. Last year, they barely gave Jose Caballero a shot. He hit .266 over 95 plate appearances, then handed the keys to Volpe. Caballero turns 30 in August. He's getting old for a frontline SS, especially one who specializes on speed. Are we really, once again, gonna balance everything on Volpe?

3. The Yankee bullpen is full of holes. It seems to be based on the franchise-wide assumption that the farm system will endlessly churn out young arms, while helping retreads like Jake Bird and Camilo Duval return to form. In other words, we're hoping to be lucky. Is that a good idea?

4. They still have no sense of balance in the outfield. If they sign a righty hitter - there aren't many left - they'll relegate The Martian and/or Spencer Jones to platoon roles, which - frankly - would jeopardize their long term careers. They are the most hyped youngsters in the entire organization - still the most intriguing - yet the Yankees have no place for them. Scranton? Again? Insane. 

5. The farm system looks perilously thin. According to The Athletic, two of their top 20 prospects went unprotected in the recent Rule 5 draft - and nobody took a flier on them. Yikes. (By the way, they are Alan Facundo, ranked #15, and Henry Lalaine, #16, two lefties.) What does it say about our system?

6. The Yankees seem to be depending on Cade Winquest, a Rule 5 pick from the Cardinals. Last time a Rule 5 selection made the Yankees' Opening Day roster was 1973, the year of Hoss, Ron Swoboda and the elderly Matty Alou. Bad sign. Really bad sign.

7. Amazingly, the Yankees haven't addressed the need for a RH-hitting catcher. Their three lefties - Austin Wells, Ben Rice and JC Escara - create a stark roster imbalance that, back in October, drew the ire of A-Rod, of all people. When the happy-talking A-Rod is criticizing you.. yikes. 

8. This week, Boston traded for Caleb Durbin, a 5'7" ex-Yankee sparkplug who will torment us for years to come. Something about a bad trade - as Melencamp would say, "Goes on, long after the thrill of livin' is gone." Last year, Cashman traded Durbin for Devin Williams, who relentlessly sucked. Durbin finished third in the NL Rookie of the Year balloting. Hate to think of what he'll do to us. But I've got a feeling we'll hear many references to Dustin Pedroia.

9. The Yankees seem to assume that Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon will return, as they were before surgery. Maybe they will. Maybe they won't. Either way, it's one hell of a gamble. 

10. Speaking of happy talk, Aaron Boone is back, spackling over our weaknesses. Nothing changes. But the world is starting to notice how weak the Yankees have become. Boston fans, in their acidic ridicule, actually pretend to feel sorry for us. It doesn't get worse.

Twin Peaks Its Happening Again GIFfrom Twin Peaks GIFs

This is Brian Cashman, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Your New York Yankees

 

Please use this post to send him a message.

Share your thoughts.

Tell him,  just how well you think he's doing.

He'll appreciate your honesty and candor.

Be Bold.

And truth be told . . . 

He may just implement some of YOUR suggestions.

Enjoy this very special Report to Camp Wednesday !

2026 ROCKS !

Life is Good, Still

Winter’s been raw as a campout in Banff,
Your new basement walls are moldy and damp,
Your curtains caught fire from a knocked-over lamp —
.      Relax!
.      Pitchers and catchers are reporting to camp.

Your check-writing hand’s developed a cramp,
Your bills are all due and you ain’t got a stamp,
Creditors cling to your neck like a clamp —
.      Smile!
.      Pitchers and catchers are reporting to camp.

DC’s infected by grifters and tramps,
Pushing democracy off a steep ramp,
But they are outnumbered and we are the champs —
.      Keep the faith!
.      Pitchers and catchers are reporting to camp.

Today begins the great Yankee Experiment of 2026: Steven Wright's team.

A Steven Wright joke goes, "Last night, somebody broke into my apartment and replaced everything with exact duplicates. When I pointed it out to my roommate, he said, 'Do I know you?'"

Today, as pitchers and catchers arrive in Camp Tampa - de facto home to both the Rays and the former Evil Empire - the Yankees have replaced their team with a roster of exact duplicates from last year. 

Somehow, this winter, somebody got into the clubhouse at George M. Steinbrenner Field and replaced every player - every lug nut, every molecule - with a perfect replica from last year's 2nd place team. 

Same team, one year older... 

I've followed the Yankees for 70 years. Never - never - do I recall them simply doubling down on last year's unexceptional team, as they have done. No big free agent, no major trade, no massively hyped rookie - just the same lineup that finished runner-up. 

This year, the Yankees and Mets will mount completely opposite strategies. The Mets begat a total winter teardown, recreating their clubhouse down to the wall studs. The Yankees didn't even rearrange the furniture.  

This could mean a craftier, wiser Yankee team, fused by comradery and experience.

It could mean a lineup that implodes from the strains of age.

On this blog, Cooperstown Cashman has few admirers. For years, I've wanted a new GM. But let's be honest: We're watching an exceptionally bold strategy - something entirely new. Cashman is holding his cards, standing pat, with or without a winning hand. He is doing this, of course, at the directive of Food Stamps Hal Steinbrenner.

Will it work? 

Can the Yankees, buttressed by maturity, create a winning clubhouse? Or will we simply see more blown out body parts?

This winter, I wanted a frontline starter. Come October, I believe they will regret not adding one. So be it.  

Another Steven Wright joke goes, "Whenever I think about the past, it just brings up so many memories." He's right. But I don't recall anything like what we're about to see. 

And so begins the Great Yankee Experiment of 2026.

The Gammonites are jubilant over MLB's looming spring changes. None of them involve the Yankees.

Today's Gray Lady - aka The Athletic's Jim Bowden - tees up  spring training, which starts tomorrow. 

Count me in. 

Let's celebrate a long-lost rhyme for February 10:

Yogi's view on deja vu:
Tomorrow, it all starts anew.   

On that note, let's ponder The Athletic's Eight Reasons to be Excited About Spring Training, and - of course - the Yankee response.

1. ATHLETIC: "This turned out to be the offseason for teams to go outside the box when choosing their new managers... It’s going to be fascinating."

YANKEES: Aaron Boone. Fascinating? Nope. 

2. ATHLETIC: "The Mets had an Amazin’ January, quickly rebuilding their team into legitimate contenders."

YANKEES: Nope. Same as last year.

3. ATHLETIC: "MLB is fortunate to welcome new talent from Japan. Three more Japanese stars."

YANKEES: Nope. Same as last year.

4. ATHLETIC: "The most positive clubhouse culture change though could be coming to the Baltimore Orioles with the addition of (Pete) Alonso."

YANKEES: Nope. Same as last year.

5. ATHLETIC:  "Detroit will have two aces making more than $30 million at the top of their rotation. But for how long?"

YANKEES:  Nope. Tarik Skubal will be a Dodger.

6. ATHLETICS: "There are still several players who were rumored throughout the offseason to be trade targets."

YANKEES: Nope. 

8. ATHLETIC: "This year’s potential rookie class is loaded."

YANKEES: Nope. 

8. ATHLETIC: "It’s finally here. The Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) challenge system."

YANKEES:  Umm, wait... Holy crap! Get wild, everybody! The ABS! (Along with our IBS.) And.. hold on! I take it all back... this just in:  

We have acquired Max "the Cruel Shoe" Schuemann! 

A quickie

 

These two are great. Final match today, noon Eastern time. Shocked that Britain got whomped so badly by Sweden, but that's how the biscuit crumbles.

Bad Bunny was great. I do not like rap in general, but that was a lot of fun. Obviously made for TV, not for the live audience as much. The sets were fantastic, the messages related to Puerto Rico were great, and it actually made me pretty homesick for New York. It's been too long since I saw a bunch of older guys playing dominoes out on the sidewalk.

And now, baseball...

The Super Bowl was tiresome, and the commercials even sucked. Ten Cultural Jury Duty observations about last night's game.

With nothing better to do, I appropriated four hours last night to America's version of cultural jury duty. 

Didn't care who won, the Jersey Gints having sapped my football fandom back in November. Just figured I'd watch, in case something happened. 

Nothing did (well, one exception.)

The obligatory 10 thoughts:

1. The game was torpid. It seemed like eight hours. I claim to love a crisp defensive gem. This was not that. New England's OL played like Styrofoam statues. Both QBs overthrew wide receivers who were wide open.

2. In today's NFL, when place-kickers commonly hit from 50 yards out, a game of field goals barely rivals the excitement of professional cornhole.

3. Actually, late in the game, something did happen. A streaker ran out onto the field and briefly eluded security. Naturally, NBC cut away and, while Mike Tirico clutched his pearls,  refused to show it. Fortunately, there are cellphones. See above.  

4. Most ads flew 30,000 feet above my head, touting products I cannot fully fathom. Crypto. Artificial Intelligence. Drugs that might inspire suicidal thoughts. Whatever happened to Irritabelle, the IBS lady? 

5. OK, number three does make me a geezer. Considering the world we're leaving them, millennials have every right to "Okay Boomer" us. But the collective theme from last night's ad blitz seemed to be that the world we know is flying out the window. Good luck understanding it, everybody. 

6. Wait! One exception: Two ads told us that Lays Potato Chips are made from...  potatoes! WHO KNEW? 

7. The halftime show needed subtitles. Seriously, would it have been that much of an extra expense, or artistic comedown, to let us dolts at home know what Bad Bunny was saying? Okay, now, I'm really sounding old: But they built a billion dollar set and didn't fucking bother to show us the lyrics. I looked forward to understanding Bad Bunny's messaging. Big disappointment.

8. At least it was fun to imagine Trump hating the show. True to form, he complained. Almost makes it worthwhile.

9. Always enjoy Tirico, who - full disclosure - was in my rotisserie baseball league, way back when he worked in Syracuse. But Chris Collingsworth has run out of gas. The slower the game, the more superlatives he heaped. By the end, we were witnessing the greatest defense in NFL history. Ridiculous. 

10. If there is a Hell, it is watching the Super Bowl pregame show through eternity.

Yanks open Tampa on Wednesday. 

If the Yankees are kidding themselves, maybe we should, too.

Today, with temps firmly below zero, I gazed out the window, saw my shadow, and thought a thought: 

This Yankee Winter of Despair cannot last forever. 

And maybe we're handling it all wrong.

Maybe we should follow the Trumpian model of governance: Never admit a mistake, never acknowledge a defeat, always accuse your critics of lying, always say everything is great, and if it's not, just claim everything is rigged. 

Why can't we apply that mindset to the Yankees? We don't need to sit around and mope. Screw the wind-chill index; damn the polar vortex. Let's merrily assume - as the Yankees are willing to do - that last year's runner-up, trotted out again, will win in 2026. Fukkit. Let's climb aboard the bandwagon and claim that everything will work. And if doesn't - well, shit, it's just a baseball team, right?  

From now on, I'm simply going to assume that...

Cam Schlittler is the pitcher who shut down Boston in the playoffs, which means he'll replace Max Fried as our ace and challenge for the Cy Young award. Moreover, our farm system will churn out more Schlittlers, boosting the rotation and bullpen. We have nothing to worry about, but worrying-about, itself.

Aaron Judge will have an injury-free season and win another MVP award. Why do I think this? Because he will be protected in the lineup by Giancarlo Stanton, who will have an injury-free season and challenge for another MVP award. Together, they will anchor a batting order, which has an injury-free season and collects awards like Bad Bunny at the Grammys.  

Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon will return from injuries as the pitchers they were before surgery. They will suffer no problems, whatsoever. And Cole will always cover first base on grounders to the right side.

Anthony Volpe will NOT return as the player he was before surgery. He'll finally become the Yankee SS of the future, who settles the infield and hits.  

The Martian will start his season at Scranton, devote himself to the Zen of fielding, and return to refresh the Yankees in July, for the stretch drive.

The Yankees will receive their rings in the newly opened Trump White House Ballroom, after a parade down the Canyon of Trump. Next winter, we'll look out of our windows to see roses in bloom, while smiling ICE agents stand guard.  

Not a good morning for Lindsey, bad crash

This is beyond sad. You could hear her screaming before anyone could get to her. Helicoptered off the mountain, no injury report yet.

Really shocking watching it live. 

Submitted for your approval...

 

...A tale of two first basemen. Both great pros. Both world champions on National League teams. Both just turned 32 years of age. And both eligible to sign as free agents with the New York Yankees.

That's right. The Yankees. The team that plays in...

The Cashman Zone.

One of them is Anthony Rizzo. Plucky, courageous cancer survivor. First baseman for the Cubs when they won the World Series for the first time in 108 years. After hitting a mere .222 in the Covid season, he is picked up for a bag of magic beans in 2021, when first sacker Luke Voit begins to flounder. 

Despite being a lefty, he hits all of .249 in 49 games, with 8 home runs—a mere three of them at the Stadium they call, "Yankee."

He does hit a solo homer in four at-bats, in the team's pathetic, one-game elimination from the playoffs up at Fenway Park.

Lifetime—10 years in the Wrigley Field bandbox—he is a .272 hitter, with 242 home runs and an .861 OPS.

Now consider another, first-baseman free agent. 

His name is Freddie Freeman, and he is just over one month younger than Mr. Rizzo. 

Freeman has just capped a career with the Braves by leading them to the World Series, in a year when he hit 31 homers, batted .300/.896, and led the NL in runs scored with 120. In the World Series win over the Astros, he hit .318 with 2 homers and 5 RBI in 6 games. 

Lifetime—12 years in the roomier Atlanta stadiums—the lefty is a .295 hitter, with 271 homers and an .893 OPS.

The choice now falls to Mr. Cashman—and to his boss, a mysterious figure named Hal Steinbrenner, who is rarely seen in public, preferring to spend his time rolling nickels on his yacht, the Corporate Welfare.

Who will Cashman, a reputed genius, pick? 

Freeman...merits not even a moment of consideration. Instead, the Yankees will go with Rizzo.

Freeman will sign with a team on the West Coast formerly of Brooklyn, known as "the Dodgers," taking a six-year deal for $162 million.

Cashman will sign Rizzo, for a minimum of four years, and $56 million.

Rizzo—impeded in part by the managerial decision to continue to play him with obvious concussion symptoms—will finish his Yankees career with 60 homers in 370 games, and a .234/.326/.409/.735 split. He will miss almost as many games—327, including the entire 2025 season—as he plays. He is retired.

Freeman becomes a doubles machine in L.A. (a home run machine in Yankee Stadium?), leading the NL with 47 (2022) and 59 (2023). He also leads the league in runs, hits, and OBP in 2022. After four years, he has 180 two-baggers, 96 homers, and a .310/.391/.516/.907 split with the Dodgers. He is still the first baseman for a world champion team.

The Dodgers have won two World Series since Freeman arrived. When their teams met in the Series, in 2024, Anthony Rizzo had two singles and no RBI in 16 at-bats, and committed one of the most embarrassing fielding gaffes in World Series history.

Freddie Freeman hit a walk-off, grand-slam home run, and had 4 homers, 12 RBI, and a .300/.364/1.00/1.364 split, en route to being names the Series MVP.

Submitted for your consideration: who got the better of these free-agent deals?

Obviously, it was...the Yankees, because Mr. Steinbrenner, the Man Who Never Smiles, had to pay $106 million less than the Dodgers.

Minus, that is, the $17.5 million they will have paid a certain Mr. Goldschmidt to replace Mr. Rizzo (and play nearly as badly) in 2025 and 2026, which reduces their savings to $98.5 million. 

Minus whatever they will have to pay to replace Mr. Goldschmidt in 2026-2027.  Minus the reduced playing time and development for the promising young Mr. Rice.  Minus—

Never mind. It's simply minus. You are in...the Cashman Zone.

Above Average would like to remind EVERY Yankees Fan out there that "YOUR-IN" CONTROL !

 THE 

GOLDEN

SH, SH, SH, SH, SHTANDARD

It's no surprise that the Yanks re-signed Paul Goldschmidt. What's shocking is that he wanted to come back.

As most of the Yankiverse mutters "Meh!" let's be among the first to say what should be shouted.

WELCOME BACK, GOLDIE.

Yes, he'll run hot and cold. Yes, he'll bust a dweezle and miss July and August. Yes, his range has shrunken to the length of a Toyota Corolla. That said, he's our Golden Oldie! our Olden Goldie!, and let's welcome him back to Hell. 

In case you missed it, Paul Oldschmidt Goldschmidt is re-upping with the Evil Employer in 2026 for $5 million, which is what Hal Steinbrenner annually spends on clam dip. He's 38, old enough to appear in the Epstein files, but nobody sweats Goldie's rep. He brings to Gotham a veteran glove, a RH bat and a positive cosmic clubhouse presence.

Okay, let's not lie here. We all wanted more than Year II of Goldie. And he might be done. (Last February, who thought DJ LeMahieu's game would so totally collapse?) He'll platoon at 1B with Ben Rice, our great hope, who showed such promise last year, who might hit everyday, and who might even become a frontline catcher.

So, here comes Goldschmidt, for another slice of the Bronx. 

At least he knows what he's getting into. 

Last year, Goldie started hot and fizzled, ending at .274 with a meager 10 HRs - worst power output in his 15 season career. In October, he went 4-9 - nothing but singles. At 38, he makes a case for Cooperstown. (Check the list: four of his 10 doppelgangers are in the Hall, with Votto on the cusp.) 

Listen: We all have doubts about doubling down on the 2025 team, the same lineup - one year older. You have to wonder if this isn't going to be a complete bust of a season. 

But let's give Cashman one credit: 

It's ballsy as hell. 

And if it fails, shit is gonna fly.

So, welcome back, and go-go Goldie!

Tarik Skubal's arbitration contract means he will never pitch for the Yankees

POINT OF ORDER: I'd like to retract the above headline.

It's wrong. It is a mistake. My apologies.

The fact is, Tarik Skubal could someday be a Yankee. 

It would happen around 2036, when he's 39, liver-spotted, gouted and moving like Kathy Bates after a 12-pack of Genny Cream. His sinker will have sunk, his fastball won't fast, and our beacon of ownership, Hal Steinbrenner, will be hooked up to an apparatus that honks once for no, twice for yes. By then, if we're unlucky enough to still be alive, the Yankees will be finishing behind Rutgers in the chase for tabloid back pages. Ten years out. Beaten and bedraggled. A symbol of the dystopia. That's when Skubal could be a Yankee.

Meanwhile, for now, he is a Tiger, with a $32 million arbitration award that will burn a hole in Detroit's fanny pack because - as everyone knows - any pitcher, at any time, can clutch his elbow, summon the trainer, shake his head and march off the field, never again the player he was. Wanna torture Phillies fans? Ask them about Zack Wheeler. The Tigers today must be shitting themselves. They've got baseball's best pitcher, and somehow, between now and July 31, they've got to either build a huge lead in the AL Central, or convert him into more than just a future draft pick. 

So, around Aug 1, at least three teams will bid manically for Skubal. In each case, their plans will revolve around the team not in the hunt: the Yankees. 

The main bidders:  

1. The Dodgers. No surprise here. They are baseball's marquee team. They are what the Yankees once were, and - I suppose - are still supposed to be. What a joke. I wonder what Hal will think when the Dodgers buy another championship, without guilt, without remorse, and without showing the slightest financial pinch? They play to win, as Hal's father did. But, hey, Hal gets to count his pennies. It must be reassuring to stand pat, sit back, and still make billions. 

2. The Mets. They'll soon be NYC's premier baseball team. Why can I say this? Because they really, really want it - and Hal doesn't. All his life, the Yankees have owned Gotham, and what did it get him? He still has to pay the rent, and all the fans do is whine, whine, whine. His dad was one of the first to encourage Trump to run for president, but Donald won't be coming to any games, unless they buy out the stadium (like Amazon did the theaters, for Melania) to tamp down the booing. The Mets have money, a hungry owner, and they've been waiting since Mookie Wilson's grounder for this moment. If Skubal goes on the market, Stevie Cohen will be first to grab the phone. 

3. The Blue Jays. The hateful, angry, foaming, unrequited Jays. First, a fun fact: Rogers Communications owns all of Canada, except for the tar sands and Alanis Morissette. Secondly, they can mine America's "51st state" disrespectfulness and tap into a seething fury that our northern neighbors rightfully feel toward the U.S. Trading for Skubal would poke the Yankees in the eye and probably win the AL East. Also, we might face him in the postseason. Pokes in both eyes. Ouch.

Look, it's fun to pretend the Yankees care. But they won't be taking on any $32 million contracts. And come next year, if Skubal's agent calls, they'll hide under the beds. We just grabbed Yanquile Fernandez. That's your 2026 Yankees. 

Syracuse makes the Epstein files!

Woo-woo. Mentioned on the national news!

Meet "Yankee for a Week" Yanquiel Fernandez... before he's gone.

Andy Warhol famously said, "In the future, everyone will be assigned to the Yankee 40-Man Roster for 15 minutes."

Thanks to the obsessive tinkering of Brian "Cooperstown" Cashman, the Yankees continue to uphold Warhol's prophesy, making fizzled former top prospects' dreams come true, by christening them as New Yorkers for a week. 

In this case, the "Evil Empire" yesterday inexplicably grabbed Yanquiel Fernandez, a LH-hitting corner outfielder, off the waiver wire. This adds to the competition for the 4th OF slot, which now includes the Martian and Spencer "There's something happenin' here but you donno what it is, do you, Mistah" Jones. Once again, Cashman is playing 4-dimensional chess - though, unfortunately, on a Chinese checkers' board.

Everybody knows the Yankees had too many LH hitting OFs. So, of course! Cashman adds one more! 

Yanquiel (pronounced "YAHN-kee-el") is just 23, so he hasn't timed out. His arrival suggests Cash is not done tinkering, that either Jones or the Martian could go in a trade. That would apply the cherry to a "Meh" winter, when the Yankees treaded water, while Boston, Baltimore and Toronto improved. 

Ah, but who cares? Here are 10 fun facts about the newest - soon-to-be-gone - Yankee.

1. He was born on New Year's Day in Havana, Cuba. 

2. He signed with Colorado at age 16, for $295,000.

3. After missing a season due to COVID, he shot up through the Rockies' system and represented them in the 2022 Futures Game.

4. That November, Colorado added him to its 40-man roster, protecting him from the Rule 5 draft. 

5. Heading into 2023, he made several top 100 prospect lists. (Note: It's all downhill from here.) 

6. In 2024, he sorta floundered in Double A, then moved up last year to Triple A and hit decently, (.284 with 13 HRs) to be promoted to the Rockies last July 1.

7. In 2025, he hit .225 with 4 HRs in 138 At Bats. He got off to a weak start, then hit over .300 in August. 

8. He was mostly platooned. Unfortunatey, against RH pitchers, his bread and butter, he hit just .217 and struck out one in every three ABs.

9. He is said to have the 2nd strongest OF arm in MLB, with an average velocity of 97.2 MPH.

10. He won't be a free agent until 2032.

Gotta like the arm. Still, another LH outfielder? Forget it. He'll be gone by Friday. 

Another RIP: Mickey Lolich

When he was 10, his father “volunteered me to play right field to fill out a game with kids 13 to 15, and the pitcher was getting bombed,” Lolich told The New York Times in December 1975, soon after the Tigers traded him to the Mets.

“I told somebody, ‘I could do as good as that,’” he added, “and the coach overheard me and put me out there to shut me up. Except that I blew the ball right by them. That’s when I knew I had a good arm.”