But The Yankees Have a Luxury Suite!

Let’s circle back to 2008.

Coming off a 94-win season in 2007, the Yankees parted ways with manager Joe Torre and handed the keys of the managerial bus to Joe Girardi. In 2008, with no significant roster changes, Joey Bullpen “led” the Yankees to five fewer wins. (Tangentially, this was the second time Girardi took over a team and made it worse – the first time he won Manager of the Year for it. I digress…)

Then, after that disappointing 89-win 2008 season, the Steinbrenner family signed some hefty paychecks to acquire a great starting pitcher, a good starting pitcher, and a switch hitter with a history of smashing baseballs from both sides of the plate.

CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and Mark Teixeira combined for 16 bWAR in 2009, the Yankees won 103 games during the regular season, and steamrolled teams in the postseason on their way to winning the 2009 World Series.

I bring this up today because this was the last time the Yankees acted like, you know, the Yankees.

The 2008 team had Jeter, Arod, Cano, Matsui, and a host of damn good players. It needed upgrades – Sabathia, Burnett, and Teixeira, fit those bills perfectly, and they were available – case closed.

Since then, the Yankees have passed on Manny Machado as a third basemen because Miguel Andujar was cheap.

They’ve passed on Corey Seager because Anthony Volpe was cheap.

They passed on opportunities to make a run at Freddie Freeman and Matt Olson because Anthony Rizzo was a nice half measure.

Who needs Blake Snell when Marcus Stroman is available?

(There are numerous other examples of the Yankees choosing financial pragmatism instead of the best player over the past decade and a half, but those gall me the most.)

Meanwhile, the Dodgers and Mets have demonstrated three things:

1. They are going to use the considerable resources at their disposal to put a team on the field that is expected to win a World Series.
2. They give zero shits what the rest of baseball thinks about that.
3. They do this knowing full well their franchise value will increase as a result – i.e., they view “A” above as an investment, not a nuisance expense.

Meanwhile, the charred remains of what used to be the Evil Empire, recently lost out on what was a perfect fit between a generational player and a team, over…

A luxury suite at the stadium. Juan Soto wanted a luxury suite. The team found that request a Bronx River bridge too far.

The Yankees did this because, unlike the Dodgers and Mets clear goal of absolute domination, the Yankees annual goal is:

Build a roster that will be in playoff contention in July, then maybe add a piece for the stretch run to get into the playoffs. From there, they might get lucky in a short series. Pretty much the same goal as the Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians.

And if that doesn’t work out, as it hasn’t for 15 consecutive years, you hold your palms up and shrug. By and large you can get away with this because your defenders in the media will point out the team still has one of the highest payrolls in baseball – without ever mentioning that Hal Steinbrenner can throw $2 billion in the Hudson River tomorrow and still have the most valuable franchise in the sport.

The Dodgers were willing to trade for Mookie Betts knowing they’d have to pull out all the stops for him to stay. They had an opportunity to convince a generational player to move across town in Ohtani, and they did it.

The Mets traded for Francisco Lindor knowing they’d have to pull out all the stops to keep him. They had an opportunity to convince a generational player to move across town in Soto, and they did it.

The Yankees?

Well, they have an open luxury box for sale. There’s that.

I’m not a fan of Brian Cashman, and anyone who’s followed me over the years knows that’s an understatement. Yet to be fair, Cashman knows who Manny Machado, Corey Seager, and Juan Soto are – just as he knew who CC Sabathia was 15 years ago.

This is on Yankees’ ownership. An ownership that is clearly inferior to the ownerships of the Dodgers and Mets.

WARNING: Do not say “If George were still alive…” George Steinbrenner was a two-time felon and not a very bright one – the Yankees built two dynasties in his two absences from suspensions.

Conversely, the Dodgers and Mets are run by owners who hire smart people to call the shots and let those people do their jobs with considerable support.

The Yankees? They have a Silver Spoons owner whose priority is to keep as much of his trust fund as possible, and now he has an extra luxury suite for sale, to meet that end.

Did I miss something? Let me know in the comments, or yell at me on the “My Baseball Page” on Facebook and Blue Sky.

Recommended reading: My “to get to” pile is getting very high, so I haven’t gotten to “The New York Game: Baseball and the Rise of a New City” by Kevin Baker yet – but I will. I’ve read enough of a few random paragraphs in it to know it’s legit.

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