For the record, the IT IS HIGH official policy regarding Juan Soto is as follows:
Sign Juan Soto. Dammit. We spent the last year trying to be amicable, cheering him, hoping he'd like us and choose to stay. It wasn't easy, being amicable. When he peacocked at home plate, or botched a fly to right, we secretly seethed. But nobody whined. Fukkin amicable, right?
So, repeating now: The official IIHIIFIIc policy:
Listenup, Hal, you booger-mouthed little cheapie, spend whatever it takes and sign Juan Soto.
But but BUT - the word of the day is but - Yank fans must ask a few questions about the oncoming Soto Sweepstakes:
1. Would Hal use Soto's signing as an excuse to sit out other free agent auctions? Even if we keep Soto, the Death Barge next year will need:
a) a 1B
b) a 2B
c) a LF
d) pitching
e) pitching
f-z) pitching.
If Hal signs Soto and goes into hibernation, we could relive the last five Giancarlo years, all over.
2. If the web is right, and Soto stays in Gotham, could it infuriate half of the NYC sporting base? From my fallout shelter in Syracuse, behind the shelves of canned soup, it's hard to gauge the current Big Apple zeitgeist, aside from wondering the whereabouts of Pizza Rat? But I can say this:
If Soto becomes a Met, I will personally take joy whenever he botches a fly ball - for the rest of his career. I recognize that Soto, by signing with the top bidder, would simply be feeding his family. But if he scorns the Yankees, it's Joggy Cano, all over again, and he will insult each of us - personally, spiritually, molecularly - and forever always wear an invisible Star Insurance patch of animosity. Nobody will weep if Soto, as an orangey Met, tweaks a hammy and misses June/July.
3. Wherever Soto goes, will the added financial weight prove harder to lug. Having more money than God will be a new experience. Throughout 2024, Soto was courted and sparked by NY. In April, he got off to a great start, throwing out a runner at home against Houston. He had a great year, and he's a great player, but he was also sorta lucky. Next year, with the limburger stench of Game 5 Inning 5 still clinging, he might not have such an easy time.
Wait. Am I sounding negative? Let me repeat the Official Stance of IT IS HIGH:
The Yankees must sign Juan Soto. Dammit. Whatever it takes. Soto and Judge should be Yankee fixtures for the next decade. But let's don't kid ourselves: Two hitters won't win a ring. If Hal doesn't have the balls to go all out - Soto and beyond! - maybe he should think of another path, one with a longer-range arc?
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11 comments:
Today, I still find it hard to care about something as trivial as the Yankees. Aided, no doubt, by Cashman saying we're lucky to have Boone.
That one statement is all we really need to know.
JM - in life there are many things that I wish that I never ever knew. That above Cash Quote about Boone is one of them.
“and forever always wear an invisible Star Insurance patch of animosity” is my Thursday Quote of the Day. A stroke of genius (not unlike what happened to Einstein seconds before he fell down the stairs)
I give him credit for being able to say that with a straight face
Pretty much yes to everything Duque wrote. Of course we need Soto. But Cashman’s poor past decisions have left us in a hole that won’t be easy to climb out of.
Which reminds me of the demise of one of my favorite authors, Kurt Vonnegut, who wrote that he and his sister thought someone falling down was the funniest thing in the world.
Kurt died after falling down on some ice and smacking his head. He couldn't have written it better.
All of those other needs can be filled in by hook or crook—or even by the farm system, which we SHOULD have tried this past year. Rumfield, Durbin, the Oswaldii, etc. Hey, it will be GOOD to see young players battling for jobs, for a change...
But YES, SIGN SOTO. He really is a generational talent. We already gave up a good starting pitcher for him.
Could he sign a $700-million deal and then bust or tear something vital? Yep. So what? I imagine that, as with the late, unlamented Ellsbury, Hal has insurance to cover all that.
PLUS...too big a risk? After the "literally" billions we the taxpayers have handed over to the Steinbrenner family? The billions more that we the fans hand over?
If baseball is too risky for Hal & Family, all they have to do is put the Yankees on the market. They will make untold billions more. DO THIS ONE BIG THING...then leave our genius GM to figure out the rest. Sign the great player. Dare to be great. Don't turn the town over to the Mets again. You may never get it back.
Having Soto back would be optimal, but only if Hal didn't stop there. So, if we took the money needed to sign Soto (60 million per over 12 years) and signed Bregman, Alonso, and a very good relief pitcher or 2 good bullpen arms, it might be better spent. We could then put Jones (by the end of 2025), The Martian, and JUdge in the outfield. Stanton could be a sometime starter in right until Jones' arrival. Put Jizzim on second or try Durban there (my preference) and use Chasm as the super-utility player. In any event, the Yankees would have a deeper batting order especially if the Dominguez projects as envisioned (despite the outfield flubs of '24).
Sign one top starter....maybe Burnes or Flarehty and NY would be the team to beat in the AL.
Horace, good points. But Hal having insurance on Soto would only be good for him-not the team as that doesn't alter the luxury tax threshold. Soto being disabled/injured would be the biggest disaster due to the impact on payroll.
Soooo, if the Yanks sign Soto and call it a day bat wise you’re looking
1.Dominguez cf
2.Soto lf
3. Judge rf
4. Stanton dh
5 Wells c
6. Volpe ss
7. Chisolm 2b
8. Rice/Djl 1b
9. Berti/Cabrera 3b
I took the liberty of putting them back at the positions they came up playing since I’m tired of the Yanks playing guys out of position. It’s not an ideal lineup but if they rebuild the pitching I can see another Al title
at :
As I recall, Gil Hodges had a heart attack, fell over backwards and smacked the back of his head on concrete. If life teaches us anything it is to always go through your day with a spotter….
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