Yankees Are Planning A Huge 2018 Splash By Not Spending Now
When George ‘the Boss’ Steinbrenner purchased the Yankees in 1973, he started a trend. Do whatever it takes and spend as much money as you need to acquire the best players and win championships. Steinbrenner’s model led to the eventual gigantic contracts under Yankees control.
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These included Alex Rodriguez‘s 10-year, $275 million, C.C. Sabathia‘s 8-year, $186 million, Mark Teixeira‘s 8-year, $180 million, Derek Jeter‘s 10-year, $189 million (in 2001), and even Sabathia’s 2012 extension of 4 years, $122 million. The list could go on and on with all of the players throughout history the Yankees have overpaid for.
“When you start talking about the best team money can buy, the Red Sox have as many free agents as we do. They just didn’t pay as much.” – George Steinbrenner
The problem the Yankees always have with these contracts is that the players perform when they are younger. But, since they are signed for so long, these players are still paid for their primes as they get older and become less and less capable of doing the job they are paid to do. Lets look at the active players individually for a second.
Alex Rodriguez has been under scrutiny over the past few years, between his PED usage, suspension, and multiple injuries. He did come back for 2015 and perform well. He performed better than nearly everybody expected, but there was a large period of time where most people did not think he would even be able to play the game of baseball again..yet he is still signed through 2017 and owed everything in his contract.
Mark Teixeira has been a lethal first baseman when he’s stayed healthy. He is known as one of the elite defensive first baseman in the game. Even his offense is stellar and ranks in the upper class of all active first baseman. However, Teixeira simply cannot catch breaks from injury. He has spent some time in each of the last 3 seasons on the disabled list for one reason or another. He still gets all of the money in his contract despite barely stepping on the field.
Lastly, C.C. Sabathia simply has not been able to perform the way he used to. When he was playing on the 2009 World Series winning Yankees, he was worth every penny he was being paid. However, his current status does not warrant being one of the highest paid pitchers in the MLB.
He struggles in his velocity, control, and health. He spent much of the last two years on the disabled list because of elbow and knee issues. He also struggled with weight issues and actually found out that he needed that extra weight behind his pitches to add needed velocity.
Since Hal Steinbrenner has taken control of the Yankees from his father, he has become much more frugal. He has been reluctant to spend extravagant amounts of money on big-name free agents. As evidenced by the Yankees unwillingness to spend past the 2013 offseason, they have learned from these past mistakes.
Or do they have a bigger plan in mind and are saving money for one of the biggest free agency classes in recent history?
In 2018, the free agents that will be available could basically form their own superstar team. Here is a list of the biggest free agent names that will be available:
Infielders:
Outfielders:
Starting Pitchers:
Relievers:
(** = can opt out of current deal)
We do not know what will happen in the near future in regards to which of these players sign extensions with their current teams. We also do not know whether or not those with opt-out clauses will use them. All we do know is that this is the current class of free agents and it is stunning.
MVP candidates, Cy Young candidates, MVP winners, and Cy Young winners will be available for the other 29 teams to snatch up. The Yankees, being the powerhouse that they are, will certainly attempt to snatch up at least one big name on this list or maybe even from each individual category.
Do not be surprised if the starting roster for the 2019 Yankees includes the likes of Clayton Kershaw and Bryce Harper. However, with the current rumors going around that players like Bryce Harper are being sold short at the notion of gathering a $400 million contract show that these players are about to get a huge pay day, regardless of if it is the Yankees that sign them or not.
By the end of 2018, as it stands now, the Yankees will have Alex Rodriguez’s mega-deal off of the books. The same goes for Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia, Chase Headley, Ivan Nova, and many more. They will have tons of money lying around to spend as they are only responsible for roughly $55 million in 2018 as of now. All of that extra money will absolutely go as a down payment on a large impact player like Bryce Harper.
You be the judge. Have the Yankees gone quiet over the off seasons recently because they are finally becoming more frugal or are they just setting up for a huge splurge in 2018?