Friday, February 2, 2024

"[I]f Carlos Rodón and Nestor Cortes can both bounce back and return to the 2022 versions of themselves, the Yankees’ rotation will stack up with any team across the league, including Baltimore’s. The risk the Yankees run if they do not add someone like, say, Blake Snell in free agency is if both Rodón and Cortes are duds once again, this team as constructed does not have the pitching depth needed to win a World Series. If the Yankees can add Snell on a short-term deal, they should strongly consider it. By adding Soto, a free agent next offseason, the Yankees declared themselves as all-in for 2024. Signing Snell would be an all-in type of move that would only cost money and not prospect capital."

See? It's not just me saying it: That's from The Athletic. 

The Yankees are on the cusp of doing something incredibly inept (and Metlike): 

They might short-ball their last best chance to win a world series. 

As currently constructed, they are a middling, knock-kneed, wild card contender. Nothing more. And I'm sorry to keep repeating the same tired pleas to sign Blake Snell. (Or Jordan Montgomery, but according to rumors, he's done with the Yankees.) He is certainly no long term answer. Snell is underwhelming, overrated, outlandishly priced, and without his beard, he looks like a weasel. 

But so be it. Weasel it is! If the Yankees merely stand pat, if they simply keep shaking their Magic 8 Ball until it says something happy, they will squander the walk years of Gleyber Torres, Alex Verdugo and Juan Soto - and perhaps the career peak seasons of Gerrit Cole and Aaron Judge. We could piss away the best years of baseball's premier pitcher and position player. (Suck on it, Shohei.) 

It is now or never. 

We must keep beating the  drums against Yankee incontinence. Scream from the building tops. Hold signs at intersections. Anybody have a sound truck? Is skywriting still a thing? Can we "SWAT" somebody? People, this is our last chance, our final crusade. Look at the ages on this roster. The Yankees either win in 2024, or we should find caves and wait for the apocalypse. We are 15 years from the last Yankee world championship, and we might be another 15 from the next.

If the Yankees are done this winter, they are consciously settling for second place. 

Is that what the Yankees do? 

15 comments:

13bit said...

That is what Hal and Brian do.

They are not the Yankees.

BTR999 said...

This would be a topic for debate if the team’s ownership was truly concerned about winning. They are not.
As long as the money continues to roll in, they’re fine.
The Orioles beat us to Burnes. Steinscammer didn’t even lift a finger.
The Orioles adjusted team payroll is $96M, the Yankees is $306M and they may finish 20 games ahead of us.
Cashman still has a job for life. Maybe Boone too, the bullshit will flow like water after every loss this year.

I hope we’re doing the total wins predictions here again, this season’s will be EPIC.

Jaraxle said...

Yeah, as said above, the Orioles got a pitcher just as good as Snell and healthier for peanuts. Depending on which prospect list you like Peraza was higher ranked prospect than both guys Baltimore gave up, so either the Yanks didn’t try or the league doesn’t think as much of their prospects as the rankers do.

DickAllen said...

Settling for second place?

This team, in it's current state, will occupy the basement in the AL East.

We are doomed to a summer of discontent.

JM said...

It'll be great slugging it out with Boston. Who can be the worser team? Enquiring minds want to know.

Celerino Sanchez said...

When I look at rotting corpse of the one-time Bronx Bombers many George Harrison songs come to mind. "When We Was Fab" "Isn't It A Pity" "All Things Must Pass" "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" "Taxman" & "Piggies" Now, when douche bag Hal sells this team. "Here Comes The Sun" will be echoed through the Monument Park!

edb said...

Poor decisions by Genius Cashn=man. This is all he is good for. Too many holes and when The Yankess once again, do not go anywhere, he will reply "Wah Wah Wah!"

ranger_lp said...

@BTR...That's because the Orioles were cellar dwellers for years and got great draft choices. The Yanks can't do that because...because...well you know why....

Doug K. said...

Baltimore got a steal. There's clearly a Yankee Tax when it comes to trades and FAs. Then again that's just the way it is. We need to spend more than other teams. OK - so spend more.

The only thing about the trade not mentioned is it is a one year deal so the price was lower but we should have met and exceeded it.

Doug K. said...

We're doom and gloomy and justifiably so but the Yankees paced six guys on the recent top 100 list. 32 teams/100 means three would be average. The Yankees had 2x that. Granted they ere mostly towards the back end of the list and we continue to age.

But I want to feel optimistic today.

Why? Because the Knicks came out flat last night and it looked like the kind of game that you just write off. I dropped out in the 2nd quarter but picked it up again in the 4th just in time to see them come back and then see Brunson get hit in the face so hard he stayed down for two minutes - no foul call BTW - he then got up, told Tibbs he was staying in and proceeded to will the team to a win on the way to 40 points.

This is the best Knicks "team" since Reed /Frazier. They all play hard. They all rebound. They share the ball. more importantly, they refuse to lose.

Brunson is a winner. All the Nova' guys are. Hart scores like 4 points yesterday but was invaluable, saving the ball from going out of bounds, steals, rebounds. They give 100%. I actually clapped at the end of the game.

It is a joy to watch them and, as a Giant and Yankee fan, I had forgotten that such joy exists.

ranger_lp said...

@Doug...The Knicks won that game last night with four starters out of the lineup. The role players have stepped up in Thibs' system. What's not to love about that?

Doug K. said...

Ranger - Yep!

Joe Formerlyof Brooklyn said...


Doug K

I usually shut up because your posts are faster, better, and on-point. Much more than I can do. I write stuff and don't post it. Most of the time.

But I quibble (it IS a quibble) with "The Yankee Tax." We are not the only people who see that Cashman can be incredibly stupid (the Montgomery deal really takes the cake).

Assuming at least SOME of the other 29 GMs have brains, then when they are talking to Cashman, it is "reach for the sky" time. The guy is obviously incredibly inept. It is roughly like selling the Brooklyn Bridge to a rube. He will probably buy it 3 or 5 times.

SO: Why not take advantage of him?

If you wanna call it a tax, Doug, OK. But this is one of those things where, like membership in a HOA, we are taxing ourselves.......

Copelius said...

So Joe,
What you are saying is it is not really a Yankee tax, but a dumbass tax? Checks out.

Rufus T. Firefly said...

If everything falls Cashie's way, the Yankees should make the playoffs. (Which should be easy given the age of the players, the competence of the training and medical staff, and the ability of the players to train correctly by bench-pressing bimbos. Wait, it might not be that easy)

If two things don't, hello last place. Which seems as sure a bet as the opening kickoff in the super bowl won't be an on-side kick recovered by the kicker.



In other breaking news, ice is cold and water is wet. Details at 11.