What’s there to say about the Yankees that hasn’t already been said? They’re a dumpster fire, a team that isn’t fundamentally built to win, rely too much on analytics, have a shitty manager, the list goes on and on. If this were any other baseball franchise, the conversation would have stopped with the fact that they’re not good enough. But this isn’t any other baseball team. So, we’re going to talk about if it’s finally time to blow everything up.
Right now, the New York Yankees are in a dire situation, as they are in 4th place in the AL East and 9 games behind first place. We’ve seen this team make mid-season runs in the past, but they don’t look like they have it in them right now. With a 33-32 record, they’d need to win at least 62 of their next 97 to have a chance at the Wild Card. According to baseball-reference.com, they have a 20.3% chance to do this. They went from title favorites to being at risk of missing their first postseason since 2016.
A Broken Roster
Ever since the pinstripes came within one game of the 2017 World Series, most people thought that they’d built a formidable roster. Just 4 years later, this sentiment has changed. With essentially the same players, they’ve been unable to duplicate the success of 2017. Some would say that this was due to the firing of Joe Girardi and the hiring of Aaron Boone, but I’d have to disagree. It was due to the belief of the front office that the game of baseball had changed for good. Instead of building a team with the intent of starting rallies with base hits, they became increasingly focused on getting guys that hit for power.
The first bad move they made was trading for Giancarlo Stanton. After an unexpectedly successful season in 2017, they decided to bulk up their roster by acquiring the disgruntled reigning MVP. They took on most of his “stantonian” contract and have watched as he has played just 54% of their games over the past 4 seasons. Yes, Giancarlo hits the ball harder than anyone in the league and is a menace when healthy, but he wasn’t needed at the time. Now, they’re paying him $30 million a year until 2027. This leaves little flexibility when trying to revamp this roster.
A Money-Crazed Owner
When George Steinbrenner died in 2010, his son Hal took over. Hal has presided over 0 world championships, and the first decade since 1910 that the Yankees didn’t win a title in. Like I said last time, Hal needs to grow a pair of balls and start wanting to kill everyone. As the owner of the most successful sports organization in history, you’d think that he’d be pissed, right? Instead, the only thing he’s focused on is staying under the luxury tax, which is why this article even exists in the first place. With his conservative mindset in place, this team could be blown up soon.
Should They Rebuild?
Now, what you’ve all been waiting for. My humble, expert, and definitely not a biased opinion on what the hell they can and should do. At this point, even though it isn’t exactly his fault, they need to fire Aaron Boone. His predecessor, Joe Girardi, did much more with much less talent. That should be the only benchmark they need to measure Boone against. As the manager, he simply has not lived up to expectations.
Next, they need to start looking to move power guys like Luke Voit. Even though I love the guy, his style of play is exactly what has gotten them to this point. The Yankees need more lefties and contact guys, and he doesn’t fit the mold of either. After they do this, they can start trying to fill the holes that need filling. With Aaron Hicks out for the season, they desperately need a center fielder. Many people have said that they want Ketel Marte, but the switch-hitting Diamondback has struggled to stay on the field. The last thing they should want right now is another injury-prone player. Someone like Bryan Reynolds of the Pirates would be perfect for them. He’s also a switch-hitter, has only missed 2 games this season, and is hitting .286 on the year.
Get On Base = Win More Games
After all of this, the best thing they could do is pray because these moves don’t guarantee any success at all. It doesn’t matter if they do anything I said or stick to the course as them playing well relies on getting on base more. This season will all come down to whether the top and middle of the lineup can grow a pair and start producing as much as is expected of them. If they can’t, get ready to see Yankee fans revolt, because they will.
