Blue Jays 10 Yankees 5
I don't know about you, but I've stopped expecting Randy Johnson to turn things around.
I'm resigned to the fact that he is a 42 year old pitcher who will never again be the dominating pitcher who almost single handedly prevented the Yankees from winning their fifth consecutive World Series back in 2001.
Yup, the Yankees are definitely paying big bucks - to the tune of 48 million over 3 years - for what Randy Johnson has accomplished in the past.
Contrast this with the team that thumped them last night, the Blue Jays, who decided to give away some Yankee-esque contracts this past offseason to players who are in their prime or just entering their prime. In other words, the Jays, like other smart teams in MLB, are intent on paying big bucks to players for what they can reasonably produce in the present and future.
For example, B.J. Ryan did not have a long history as a dominant closer before the Jays gave him 47 million over 5 years. But his age and his performance as the Orioles closer last season convinced Jays brass that they were going to pay big bucks for the best years of B.J. Ryan's career.
The Yankees are in trouble.
They have a boatload of heavy contracts for players who either well past their best playing days (Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina), or for players who don't have the make-up for clutch performances (A-Rod).
The blame goes partly to George Steinbrenner, and partly to Brian Cashman.
If Cashman were more shrewd, he would have been smart and strong enough to commit to developing younger players before he was forced into it last year with Wang and Cano.
Okay, enough ranting.
Here are some steps that Cashman can take to help make up for all of the mistakes that Yankees management has made since the Paul O'Neil era:
1. Don't pick up Gary Sheffield's option for 2007. It doesn't matter how he performs this year. He may have the heart of a lion, but this lion only shows up when he feels like it. We don't need his approach to the game.
2. Don't even think about signing Mussina to another contract after this year. Not even for half a million dollars.
3. Ditto for Randy Johnson after his contract runs out at the end of 2007.
4. Most importantly, do everything that can be done to trade A-Rod. I can't think of a manager who has the guts to slot A-Rod into the 6th or 7th hole in the batting line up because of his tremendous ego and contract. But this is exactly where A-Rod belongs. Having him in the 3 or 4 spot is killing the Yankees. This spot should be taken by Giambi or Matsui.
If you have any thoughts on what the Yankees need to do to turn their ship around, please leave a comment below.
- Joshua
InsideTheYankees.com
I'm resigned to the fact that he is a 42 year old pitcher who will never again be the dominating pitcher who almost single handedly prevented the Yankees from winning their fifth consecutive World Series back in 2001.
Yup, the Yankees are definitely paying big bucks - to the tune of 48 million over 3 years - for what Randy Johnson has accomplished in the past.
Contrast this with the team that thumped them last night, the Blue Jays, who decided to give away some Yankee-esque contracts this past offseason to players who are in their prime or just entering their prime. In other words, the Jays, like other smart teams in MLB, are intent on paying big bucks to players for what they can reasonably produce in the present and future.
For example, B.J. Ryan did not have a long history as a dominant closer before the Jays gave him 47 million over 5 years. But his age and his performance as the Orioles closer last season convinced Jays brass that they were going to pay big bucks for the best years of B.J. Ryan's career.
The Yankees are in trouble.
They have a boatload of heavy contracts for players who either well past their best playing days (Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina), or for players who don't have the make-up for clutch performances (A-Rod).
The blame goes partly to George Steinbrenner, and partly to Brian Cashman.
If Cashman were more shrewd, he would have been smart and strong enough to commit to developing younger players before he was forced into it last year with Wang and Cano.
Okay, enough ranting.
Here are some steps that Cashman can take to help make up for all of the mistakes that Yankees management has made since the Paul O'Neil era:
1. Don't pick up Gary Sheffield's option for 2007. It doesn't matter how he performs this year. He may have the heart of a lion, but this lion only shows up when he feels like it. We don't need his approach to the game.
2. Don't even think about signing Mussina to another contract after this year. Not even for half a million dollars.
3. Ditto for Randy Johnson after his contract runs out at the end of 2007.
4. Most importantly, do everything that can be done to trade A-Rod. I can't think of a manager who has the guts to slot A-Rod into the 6th or 7th hole in the batting line up because of his tremendous ego and contract. But this is exactly where A-Rod belongs. Having him in the 3 or 4 spot is killing the Yankees. This spot should be taken by Giambi or Matsui.
If you have any thoughts on what the Yankees need to do to turn their ship around, please leave a comment below.
- Joshua
InsideTheYankees.com
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