You Mean There Could Be Some Bumps In The Yankees Road This Year?
Great stuff today via Bob Klapisch on the Yankees, Joe Girardi, and some potential hurdles for them –
In fact, there are enough baseball executives who think the Bombers are set to run off another mini-dynasty. They have the AL’s most talented roster, they have a $200 million payroll and, most importantly, they’re being run more efficiently than at any time in the last 20 years.
“I think Brian [Cashman] has learned a lot about running a team,” said one rival executive. “He’s made some mistakes, but if you go around and ask people what they think of the Yankees, the answer you’ll get is that they’re intelligently run.”
The corporate IQ filters down to Girardi, who did a much better job with his players in 2009 than he did in 2008. He cleared out the anti-ARod residue he’d inherited from Torre, Mike Mussina and Jason Giambi, maximizing the infectious optimism generated by CC Sabathia, Nick Swisher and, yes, even Johnny Damon, whose what-me-worry personality will be sorely missed.
No one doubts Girardi has a killer roster, and, going into the final year of his contract, has a clear edict from ownership: Win another pennant, or else.
“Honestly, I don’t let myself worry about the next contract, I’m more focused on getting my team ready for opening day,” Girardi said by telephone Friday. “I know what’s at stake. I know about the expectations. But that’s never changed; it’s been this way ever since I took this job.”
After the 2001 World Series, 12 different teams played in the next seven Fall Classics. Between 2005 and 2008, eight Series berths were filled by eight different clubs and in 2008, no team repeated as division champion for the first time in 20 years.
Said another general manager, “it used to be you could be strong for three-four-five winning seasons in a row, but that window of opportunity is much smaller now.”
“I’ve got a good group of veterans who I can count on. That’s important to me,” Girardi said. He was talking about Jeter, Rivera, Pettitte and Posada, of course, his clubhouse cops who’ll be watching Robinson Cano and Joba Chamberlain, in particular.
It’s hard to imagine complacency seeping through so many layers of Yankee vigilance, but it’s still worth watching how Girardi handles the first losing streak that goes beyond, say, three games. Or how Chamberlain or Phil Hughes handles the inevitable assignment to the bullpen. And how Cano, without his close friend Melky Cabrera, copes with being set adrift in the clubhouse.
These are all on Girardi’s watch list for 2010.
As I have mentioned before, “the season after” is always a situation worth contemplation. And, given that the A.L. East this season should be a tough fight between the Yanks, Bosox and Rays, there’s always the chance that New York could be left outside the October dance hall this year…looking in at the others having a party.
But, bottom line, not making the post-season in 2010 has to been seen as a failure for the Yankees – given their payroll/talent/expectations. And, if that happens, it will be interesting to see the root cause and the eventual ripple effect…in terms of who takes the hit and what that means for them in 2011.
They have the AL’s most talented roster, they have a $200 million payroll and, most importantly, they’re being run more efficiently than at any time in the last 20 years.
Cashman is doing the same thing he has been doing since Feb 98
The corporate IQ filters down to Girardi, who did a much better job with his players in 2009 than he did in 2008.
Funny how that works when you have Cano, Cabrera, Posada & Jeter post better seasons in 2009 than they did in 2008.
After the 2001 World Series, 12 different teams played in the next seven Fall Classics. Between 2005 and 2008, eight Series berths were filled by eight different clubs and in 2008, no team repeated as division champion for the first time in 20 years.
Arbitrary timelines aside NYY, BOS & LAA made the playoffs 3 of the 4 years. PHI, CHC, CHW, SDP, LAD & StL made the playoffs 2 of those 4 years. Not sure of the point that he’s trying to make here.
But, bottom line, not making the post-season in 2010 has to been seen as a failure for the Yankees
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Agreed. This should be the goal of every Yankee team at this point: Make the postseason, and hope to get hot because anything can happen.
None of this “World Series Champs or failure” crap. Steve has it absolutely right, just find a way to get to the playoffs any way you can.
With the pitching staff they have in place, if they don’t make the playoffs it would be a pretty big failure.
Also, if they fail to make the playoffs it kind of means they lost Arodys Vizcaino for nothing.
@ Raf:
I wouldn’t say Cashman has been doing the same thing since 98. He really only got control of the club in 2004 and even then there were plenty of lingering contracts from Steinbrenner.
Rob Abruzzese wrote:
Um, the guy has never played above A ball, lets not jump to conclusions that he’s a sure superstar. And what if the Yanks failing to make the playoffs has nothing to do with Vasquez, but rather Burnett, Pettite and/or 5th starter have terrible seasons?
@ Rob Abruzzese:
Cashman has been spending money and making shrewd trades, and taking on other teams’ bad contracts. Sometimes the moves work, sometimes they don’t.
He may not have as much interference from above, but his MO has pretty much been the same since he took the GM position.
“…given that the A.L. East this season should be a tough fight between the Yanks, Bosox and Rays, there’s always the chance that New York could be left outside the October dance hall this year…”
“But, bottom line, not making the post-season in 2010 has to been seen as a failure for the Yankees – given their payroll/talent/expectations.
I’m sorry, to me, this is illogical. If you say that the Bosox and Rays will stage a tough fight, you can’t say the Yanks not making the post-season in 2010 is a failure…especially when you also contend, essentially, that the Yanks were fortunate, because a lot of breaks went their way last year.
Let me connect the dots. If the Yanks were fortunate, and the Rays and Red Sox are about as good as they are, then how can it be a “failure” if they don’t make the post-season, considering your evaluation of the true pre-season state of the race is that the three teams are essentially equal?
A disappointment, I can understand. But a failure?
Does not compute. To me, anyways.
“I think Brian [Cashman] has learned a lot about running a team,” said one rival executive. “He’s made some mistakes, but if you go around and ask people what they think of the Yankees, the answer you’ll get is that they’re intelligently run.”
It’s hard to know precisely what moves in the early part of the decade were Cashman’s, but the big thing is that the Yankees finally started to invest in young players and high end starting pitching. Joba, Phil, Cano, Wang (before he was hurt), Cabrera, Anderson, and others all freed up a lot of payroll to bring in a lot of all stars.
And then there is a huge difference between Randy Johnson at end of his hall of fame career and CC. Apart from Musina, the Yankees really didn’t make moves that panned out with their rotation or their bullpen in the first part of the decade. Kevin Brown, Carl Pavano, Jared Wright, Kyle Farnsworth, and Jeff Weaver were mediocre at best and often grossly overpaid. And there were hardly any good young players coming up through the farm system.