I’m not a fan of the New York Yankees. Frankly, I’m a Yankee Hater. Watching the demise of the Bronx Bombers brings yours truly a bit of schadenfreude. To see fans of the Pinstripes wallow in despair fills me with unparalleled personal joy. The World Series defeats of 2001 and 2003 are wonderful memories and satiated my Yankee Hate through the winters following. When baseball’s most storied franchise finished their epic collapse in the 2004 ALCS to the whipping boy Boston Red Sox, it was the culmination of everything being right in the universe and maybe as close as I’ll ever come to believing in the power of a supreme being.
Today we find the Yankees riding a five-game losing streak in last place in the American League East and trailing the BoSox by 14.5 games. Only three teams in all of Major League Baseball have fewer wins than the $200 million (or so) Yankee payroll. With Steinbrenner ailing with health issues (and even my Yankee Hate doesn’t go far enough to wish bad things upon him at this point), the Bombers are somewhat of a rudderless ship right now. So in the spirit of helping a fan base in need, I’m going to put aside my distaste for all things New York and offer some advice to this beleaguered franchise. If George turned to me in a moment of weakness and asked for my counsel, I would offer the following:
Remove Brian Cashman as General Manager – From what I’ve read and heard from him, Cashman is not a bad guy. I’m not calling for his outright firing. He might be a pretty shrewd administrator. But as a GM? Let’s just say there’s little reason to be impressed regardless of how many Yankee apologists say otherwise. Backed by a huge budget with the advantage of being at the helm of baseball’s marquee franchise, Cashman’s biggest obstacle is dealing with Steinbrenner. A guy getting paid to deal with a difficult boss? Welcome to everybody’s job. Running the Yankees isn’t a cross to bear, it’s a dream job. Easy? No, but it’s got to be better than running the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Do you think Cashman would trade in his job for Dayton Moore’s in Kansas City? Not a chance so let’s skip the pity party and look at what he’s done.
Three World Series, five AL pennants and a team on top of the division standings every year since he took the wheel back in 1998. Though his credentials look impressive on paper, how many other GMs could have pulled together the same feats? With bottomless coffers to raid (thanks to the YES network), “Cash Man†might be a more appropriate moniker for the executive. Think of it this way; in recent memory, how many times have the Yankees been outbid on a player they’ve wanted? Andy Pettitte’s move to Houston seemed to be motivated by more than money. Clemens joined him for the same reason. (And they’re both back in New York and being paid handsomely.) The ability to retain your homegrown talent is a massive hurdle for any GM… Unless you’re the Cash Man. (While we’re at it, can you name a single successful player Cashman drafted? A quick scan of drafts going back to 2000 illustrates how the Yankees scouts don’t seem to be spotting the up-and-comers.) Though the Yankees minor leagues are bereft of talent, Cashman still had the biggest of weapons at his disposal; cold, hard cash. Even with this advantage, Brian Cashman hasn’t been able to maintain Yankee prominence. For that reason alone, a better option for general manager should be sought.
Rebuild the Minors – This is always easier said than done. With the team finishing in the upper portion of the standings each year and MLB’s prohibition on trading draft picks, it’s not as though the Yanks will be picking at the front of the draft order in the near future. What the Yankees can do is to stop dealing any promising prospect for this year’s next soon-to-be-free-agent. The new GM has to stem the flow of players out the door.
(At this point in writing the article, I went back and did some quick and dirty research of the last seven Yankee drafts. What a stinking pile of refuse. One thing’s for sure, they’ll never confuse Cashman with Billy Beane or John Schuerholz. Luckily the Yanks make up for there draft day ineptitude by signing every foreign player that draws breath. Melky Cabrera, Robinson Cano, Chien-Ming Wang and Hideki Matsui are current Yankees signed outside the auspice of the amateur baseball draft so I’ll say the they’ve done a decent job of raiding the foreign market. Now that the rest of baseball is finally recognizing talent overseas, will the Yanks be able to depend on this talent pool as much as before? Not likely.)
Regardless of the Pinstripe’s recent draft failures, a new GM should separate the immediate needs of the big club from long-term goals for the minor league system. If – and that seems to be a big if at this point – the Yanks can start actually drafting MLB-worthy talent, the new GM will need to keep it within the organization no matter what bait is waved before them to improve the big league club.
Don’t Get Rid of the Old Guard – If there is going to be transition period for the Pinstripes, they’ll need Derek Jeter to be onboard with it. With his thirty-third birthday pending, the Yankee captain has maybe five quality years left in him. Turning over the roster could take a fair portion of that period. Johnny Damon, Jorge Posada and Jason Giambi are aging in dog years at this point so they’ll likely stay on for another two or three seasons if a contract is offered. Pettitte, Mussina and Clemens are in the twilight of their respective careers but have something left in the tank so the Yanks probably don’t have to worry about completely rebuilding the staff for 2008. Holding onto these players for the next couple years could keep the fan base satisfied while the minors round into shape.
Continue the Practice of Buying Players – Just because most baseball fans despise the Yankees for their ability to outspend everyone doesn’t mean the Pinstripes should stop playing the game they play best. Until the minor leagues can be restocked with talent, the new GM will have to continue overpaying for talent. And that’s not a bad thing. Most free agents want to play on the biggest stage and the Big Apple certainly qualifies as such. It never ceases to amaze me when a potential free agent is positioning himself to hit the market and then hears a whisper of Yankee interest. Suddenly they can’t wait to put on the pinstripes. The public courtship becomes a big ego stroke for the player. Some even take it to the extreme of flirting with rival teams so as to extort more money from the Yankees and stoke the media fires even higher. Heck, Roger Clemens perfected the art and turned a game at Yankee Stadium into a love-in.
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=tEi734O5P6A[/youtube]
Oops, wrong clip. (But that was the REAL audio.)
Until the minor leagues can be rebuilt, you’ve still got to put butts in the seats and nothing does that like big-name free agents. As long as the purse strings are loose, there’s no reason for the Yanks to ignore their biggest advantage. Are they going to miss on occasion (Carl Pavano)? Sure. But they’ve been known to hit too (Mike Mussina).
And If You’re Buying, Buy the Right Players – Mark Teixeira will be a free agent after this year at the tender age of 28. The new Yankee GM should be on Big Tex’s doorstep the day after the World Series concludes and begin the wooing process. Teixeira is from the Baltimore area and is rumored to be heading back to Oriole Country. A wheelbarrow full of money might be enough to convince the slugger to play the prime of his career 200 miles from his hometown. While our new GM is at it, he can stop by Carlos Zambrano’s house with a Brinks truck if the Cubs fail to sign their ace pitcher over the summer. He’ll only be 26 years old with seven seasons of major league experience under his belt and the ability to become a cornerstone of any rotation. Guys like these two just don’t grow on trees. The Yankees built their organization in the 1990s around not losing such promising players. If they’re going to open the pocket book, be sure to spend it on the guys that shouldn’t be on the market in the first place. Instead of wasting cash on one-year wonders (Pavano), the Pinstripes would do better to focus all their efforts into signing only the most proven and durable of free agents. Granted, they’re few and far between, but what few do become available will have a hard time resisting the pull of fame and fortune in the House that Ruth Built.
So there you are; five quick and relatively easy steps to turning the New York Yankees around. The team could remain competitive (though maybe not the world beaters they’ve been for the last ten years) while keeping the fan base placated and showing an eye toward the future. A change a minor league philosophy here, clip an executive there, find a new scout or two and suddenly the Bronx Bombers are right back on track.
Then the rest of us can go back to fostering our Yankee Hate again.
Enjoying Canon Fodder? Pass it on to friends and family. Have a question or just want to point your finger and laugh at the expense of Yankee fans? Tell me about it by dropping an e-mail at jeff@canon-fodder.com and I’ll see about including it in an upcoming article.