Without Gerrit Cole, the Yankees were on a course to lose NYC

The prophet known as Old George used to say that to own the Big Apple, you had to merely win the back pages of fish-wraps. With that in mind, three years ago, we launched our Tabloids Back Cover Count - using Murdoch's Post and Daily News, Gotham's yin and yang - as a way of determining which sport team rules New York.

In 2017, when the surprising Yankees reached the ALCS, their dominance was assured. But ever since, their influence and power has perilously dwindled, as shown in the following chart. 

At this rate, the Mets appear destined to take NYC by June. And why not? They have baseball's best pitcher (deGrom), the game's premier slugger (Alonzo) and great NY story lines (Cano, Thor and now Betances.) In September, the Mets briefly leapfrogged the Yankees in the back page race. They only lost by 21 pages. Had they reached the playoffs, they might have won 2019. 

However, 2020 brings a new game-changer. His name, of course, is Gerrit Cole.

Did Hal Steinbrenner see the dwindling number of Yankee tabloid covers, recall his dad's marketing philosophy, and conclude that it was time for a free agent signing?  

Obviously, a winning team generates its coverage. Nothing succeeds like success, right? But over the last three miserable years, New York's back pages often came with ridicule and anger. The failure to generate a championship team - or even a team to reach the championships - has allowed mediocrity to reign. 

You can see it in the back pages: Lost opportunities.

Between 2017 and 2018, the Jets virtually doubled their cover count - from 35 to 70. Yet this year, stuck at 68, they made no inroads whatsoever, despite fielding a slightly better team than the rotten, piss-poor Giants. This should have been the Jets' year to bypass the Tisch/Mara country club abomination. They simply blew it. 

Meanwhile, the Giants lost about a third of their covers over the previous year - a drop from 140 to 87. Even so, they somehow received more attention than the Jets. You wonder: Why should the Giants care if they win or lose? They still command the back pages.

Then there is the utterly rancid Knicks, a franchise I once followed - long, long ago. They have fallen into a permanent trench, an ongoing disaster that seems to defy the rules of random selection: If the Dolans 20 years ago had simply flipped coins on every decision, or turned over the reigns to a cab driver, they couldn't have done worse. They can't even tank properly. Frankly, I believe it's something about New York: The incredible distractions and stresses ruin players. I have no expectation of following them again in my lifetime. No team in sports is more deserving of a public shunning.

Three years ago, the Knicks compiled 129 covers - not much, considering that they have almost the entire winter to themselves. This year, they generated 68 covers, and most were condemnations by tabloid editors who'd had enough. And yet, still, the tabs didn't follow the Nets, who scored a woeful 15 covers in 2019.  

As for the Rangers? Islanders? Jersey Devils. To be noticed, they must win a Stanley Cup. The Rangers in 2019 took one cover - one. Bob Kraft's sex scandal, Bryce Harper's hair, and Big Papi's shooting all received more attention.

It's as if the owners are colluding - systematically allowing their teams to be bad - so their billionaire brethren are not embarrassed by the products they sell. 

So... the Yankees in 2019 remained kings of the back page. But be forewarned: If Cole pulls up lame, or Aaron Judge tweaks a gonad, or Giancarlo simply sits out another season... 2020 could be the year the Mets take over. 

You can read it in the morning news.