New York Yankees: Fall of an Empire

If these two elderly people are Red Sox fans, I apologize.

So with the MLB winter meetings over, I have been waiting to hear about the New York Yankees signing three or four huge stars in another attempt at winning a World Series. And clearly with what we saw in the playoffs last year, the Yankees need something if they are going to try and make a run at it. And with their current lineup, that will not happen; as they stand right now, the Yankees are old, slow and injured. The Texas Rangers made them look like a Triple A team with Cliff Lee only pitching once in that series. Yankee fans should be glad that Cliff Lee went into God-mode against the Tampa Bay Rays and knocked them out of the playoffs because the Rays would have swept New York and got the Yankees whole front office fired. So normally about this time, the Yankees would go and buy some big time free agents in order to keep up with the rest of the American League, in this years case either Cliff Lee, Carl Crawford, or Jayson Werth. Also, there were rumors about New York trying to trade for Zach Greinke from the Kansas City Royals if the top free agents from this year somehow left money on the table and went to different teams. But no way that could happen. The Yankees have landed the biggest free agents for the last ten years from CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett and Mark Teixeira all in one year, Alex Rodriguez years before and Roger Clemens for half of another year. From Curtis Granderson to Nick Swisher to even Randy Johnson, everyone knows that every year the Yankees would offer some super awesomely huge contract to whatever prized free agent there was. The Players Union would then put pressure on said free agent to sign with New York in order to maximize all the free agent contracts that year, and POW!, the Yanks break another salary record and fill up the American League All-Star line-up. So we are all just waiting on their first move to come across the line.....still waiting.....nothing yet....

...and were still waiting.......what? All the free agents have already signed with other teams? Werth to the Nationals? Crawford to the Red Sox? And Lee to the Phillies? (because the Phils needed a front of the line starter...) Wow OK. Well surely the Yankees will make a move for Zach Greinke...what do you mean he already got traded to the Brewers? So you are telling me that the “greatest” franchise in sports could not land any free agents this year? Why would that be? How could the Yankees swing and miss so badly? Could it be because players have gotten tired of the Yankees? Could it be because the Yankees name and brand has been worn out over the years? Or could it be because of the way the Yankees handled the Derek Jeter situation? I believe the answer to all is yes.

The Yankees in my eyes have become this tired old man who feels entitled to things that he has not earned but still deserves them anyway just because of his storied past. Everyone, and I mean everyone, gave the Yanks last years World Series before the season even started. And what happened? The Rays ran up, down and all around them and took the division. Then the Rangers ran them out of the playoffs in 6 games. OK Grandpa. I have heard your stories. They are boring and old and you are boring and old and no one cares that you have won 987236459023475 World Series titles. What have you done in the last ten years? You have won once. The MLB is changing in this post-steroid era and until you realize this, teams like the Rangers, Red Sox and Rays are going to continue to make you look like the old, boil-ridden, nasty old man that you are. The rising teams are putting emphasis on youth, overall team speed, overall team defense (pitching and fielding) and just straight athleticism. And on top of being old and beaten up, you treated the face of your franchise like a piece of trash that had not ever done anything for you and you seemed insulted that he wanted to be treated like the five time World Series champion that he is. I am speaking of course of Derek Jeter, who the Yankees were actually going to discard just because he is past his prime and wanted one more year on his new contract from the team who he gave 14 great years. All this while the Yankees will spend ungodly amounts on players who have no history with the team and will not be near as productive in three years.

I realize it is a business and I know all about the Yankees history, but look at you now. Players are smarter than ever and are being surrounded by even smarter people. And look what your tired old ways and your “business” has gotten you. Players nowadays want to make a name for themselves and not to be compared to old Yankee players who could not even make a major league roster today. Players are seeing that if you want to win a World Series, you do not have to sell out for the Yankees but instead you can win it in other places with other teams (i.e. the San Francisco Giants this last year.) And players see how the Yankees treated one of the most famous Yankees ever, Derek Jeter, and they are put off by that. I mean how would they be treated if the Yankees treated Derek Jeter like that?

Finally, the age and stubbornness of the Yankees, I believe, has caught up to them. I think that players are going to start staying away from New York despite all the money and all the history and like Rome and Grandpa's old stories, the Yankees will fall and fade away. Have a good time with your history and overpaid players New York, and enjoy finishing third in the AL East every year.