“We’re getting after it! We’re defending our title with a whole different crew! Our intention is to find a way back to the World Series! Stay tuned!”
He neglected to add, "And buy U.S. Savings Bonds! Jollygood show! Y'all come back now, ya hear! Excelsior!"
Insert shrug here.
So... Here we are, halfway through this snake of a winter, which has already restructured NY's sports landscape for the rest of our lifetimes. This will be remembered as the year the Yankees...
a. Embarrassed themselves in the World Series
b. Lost Juan Soto to the Mets
c. Became the Number 2 team in NY
d. Gave up their Florida encampment, soon home of the Rays.
This is the winter that the Mets took New York, our worst disillusionment since 2004, when Boston ate our lunches - a defeat that, 20 years later, has yet to be avenged. Increasingly, it looks like we will go to our graves, forever chasing wild cards, while Boston periodically tanks, regroups and wins the world championship.
Interesting that Cashman talked about getting "back to the World Series," which is hardly the goal for much, if not most, of the Yankee fan base. We want to win a fucking World Series, not appear in one, and certainly not to end up constantly recalling the most embarrassing Game 5 meltdown in history.
Cashman can talk joyously about a World Series appearance. The fan base won't join in. The recent October showed us, once and for all, to be careful what you wish for.
Santander would be - like Cody Bellinger, whom we obtained this week - an incremental improvement. He hit 44 HRs last year, and he switch-hits. He is a rare RF who is not a defensive upgrade over Soto. And he does not get on base often. (Neither does Bellinger or, basically, everybody on the team except Judge and Giancarlo.)
Rumors come and go. Toronto and Boston - both having offered Soto up to $700 million - clearly have money to burn this winter. Are they sitting out Santander, saving for Corbin Burnes or Alex Bregman? Dunno. But I do believe in collusion. The owners are in freefall over Soto's bidding war. And now, with Soto a Met, every Yankee move stinks of desperation.
So, getting to the World Series? Woopie. Been there, done that. And trying to forget. Damn, winters are cold, when you're Number 2.
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11 comments:
Burnes. We need Burnes. And to get rid of Stroman.
I could live without Rodent, too, but you can only ask for so much.
Whither the animated corpse of DJLM? Is he really going to clog up our roster again this year? Handing out these long term contracts to ameliorate salary cap hits comes with the knowledge that ar some point the player will have to be released resulting in dead money.
The free agent additions are nice, but I’m getting serious 1980s Yankee vibes now. Player development is so key nowadays and we just don’t succeed at that. I mean Volpe came up with Bobby Witt hype and then NO. Plus, hitting a pitched ball is still one of the most difficult athletic skills. I’m prepping for back to the future 80’s Yankees ball. Gimme our current facsimiles of Dave Winfield and Roy Smalley and let’s roll to 2nd place!
Did you see that Professor Tanaka is still pitching in Japan? Signed with the Yomiuri Giants. Guess his arm never fell off. We coulda used that guy last year. In fact, every year since he's been gone, although he hasn't exactly been lights-out in Japan. If he was still here, in any capacity, I bet we'd get Sosaki, the latest wunderkind from the Land of the Rising Sun.
Oh, well. I'm sure Cashman knows what he's doing...
******UPSTATE ALERT*******UPSTATE ALERT******
Take the brown acid, but watch out for the weed, man...
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/18/nyregion/bat-poop-cannabis-deaths-ny.html
Amen, Duque. A big NO to Santander, Joey Gallo II. Burnes and Scott should be priorities, with Bregman after that. But we won't get any of that.
Hoss - I read what you wrote yesterday about the Yankees making a huge mistake by letting Soto get away. While I could be convinced that not signing him is an error of epic proportions I truly believe that there was no way that he wanted to sign with Yankees all things being remotely equal so they would have had to outbid the Mets by an insane amount to get it done.
a few things lead me to this conclusion
1) Soto had previously stated that he wanted to have a close relationship to the owner. Not only is Hal not capable of this due to his reclusive personality but Steve Cohen is a salesman. The difference between a self-made BILLIONAIRE and, as you so rightly call Hal, a nepobaby.
Uncle Steve (Imagine saying Uncle Hal) persuades. Hal presents. And of the two, who would you rather hang out with?
2) The Mets are fun. Better stadium. Happier place to be.
3) Money. 75M bonus. Suite for his family. etc.
What it says to me is, "We will take care of you" for Hal it was a negotiation. for Steve it was a big part of his promise to the fans and to himself.
He sees owning the Mets as a civic duty and once said something along the lines of "So I lose a few hundred mil. But I'd make the people of the City of NY (and myself) happy. Hal can't make that statement.
4) Ego - In the minds of the press Soto had a career year BECAUSE of Aaron Judge. But Soto, in his own mind, doesn't need Aaron Judge. He's the greatest player of all time.
Add all of this up and I don't see how the Yankees were going to sign him unless they went way over the Mets offer. So it's not really a mistake by management.
It's just the way things are.
Excellent summation Doug. Seen in this context, I hope it makes it easier for everyone to get over this and move on.
Doug, family is everything. The Yankees dissed Jose's parents. Dude, his family boiled Hal's bones at the dinner table every night. Then he met the douchebag 'brain trust' and the turgid, arrogant stench of Hal, Brian, Lonn and Randy sitting around the same table while Jose was trying to eat told Jose EVERYTHING HE NEEDED TO KNOW. Those 4 clowns explained everything just by sitting together and running their mouths.
But money is money and this was Jose's big payday. Even though the Intern was willing to match dollar for dollar, Randy, Lonn and Hal were quite firm that workers should not sit in the same section as the ruling class.
So the stench of the Yankee leadership, as manifested by decades of clueless incompetence, was the true deal-breaker. When Cohen showed real respect, Jose was gone, gone, gone.
It wasn't Cohen's money that won the day, it was his grace, class and respect. 3 things the Yankee leadership have none of.
Agree 100%. Like I said Hall is a soulless accountant nepo baby. Cohen is a closer. He finds the leverage point and works it.
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