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New York Yankees: Is it time to start panicking?

By Israel Gonzalez

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The New York Yankees have been pretty quiet this offseason, but with reports indicating that David Price is all set to sign a 7-year, $217 million contract with the rival, Boston Red Sox, should fans be entering panic mode?

If you ask any New York Yankees fan, each and every one of them would tell you that David Price signing with the Boston Red Sox is a nightmarish start to free agency for the team and its fans. The Yankees seldom miss out on free agents to any team, much less a rival. But that has been the case for the past two off-seasons.

For all intents and purposes, the Yankees had no interest (last off-season) in neither Hanley Ramirez nor Pablo Sandoval, who were both signed by Boston. And yet, all the fans saw was the Red Sox getting stronger and the Yankees remaining the same.

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But there was hope for this off-season, though.

Fans have had their eyes on David Price for years now. Not only because they had to see him several times a season, but also because they knew (deep within their hearts) that neither the Tampa Bay Rays nor the Toronto Blue Jays would be able to afford any long-term contract with the ace. After all, this the same David Price who has a Cy Young award under his belt. The same David Price that has been brilliant for years now. The same David Price that has, at least, four more years of his prime left.

And then there was no hope.

David Price won’t be wearing pinstripes next year. The Yankees won’t be sending out David Price, Masahiro Tanaka, Luis Severino, and Michael Pineda in games 1-4 of the 2016 World Series. No. Instead, it will be the Red Sox getting to march out Price every fifth or sixth day.

That has got to sting.

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Prior to signing Price, the Red Sox also signed former Yankee, Chris Young, and also traded for Craig Kimbrel, a perennial Rolaids Relief Man Award contender (now named the Mariano Rivera AL Reliever of the Year and the Trevor Hoffman NL Reliever of the Year).

Chris Young stated that while he holds no ill-will towards the Yankees, he is happy to be part of a team that has made getting better a priority.

“It’s a great feeling to be on a team that’s trying to make those moves to make a big difference ad go all the way,” said Young to the New York Daily News. “The moves (for Kimbrel and Price) aren’t moves to just try to contend; those are moves that were made with the big picture in mind and to try to win a World Series. That sends a message to your team, it sends a message to the fans of what the goal is. That’s extremely inspiring and motivating. It makes you show up to spring training with a different mindset, for sure.”

Speaking of mindsets, what mindset are the Yankees and their fans going to be in if the team has to rely on Alex Rodriguez duplicating his numbers from last year, Mark Teixeira staying healthy, and C.C. Sabathia keeping his earned run average under five?

What mindset are they going to be in if every team in the AL East gets better, and the team stays put because Hal Steinbrenner refuses to make the moves that are necessary to win in Major League Baseball?

What mindset are they going to be in if major players go down, and there are no reinforcements on the horizon?

The Yankees had a good year last year. Some might even say that they overachieved. But they were stopped in their tracks by a younger, hungrier Houston Astros team in the one-game playoff. If they weren’t good enough then, what makes them think that they are good enough now?

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Sooner or later, being called the New York Yankees isn’t going to mean much. For the Yankees to get back on track, they have to be the Yankees. This means outspending everyone, and getting the players that are required to win.

As of right now, the Yankees have no interest in this. And so we are back at square one, chasing our tails, wondering what went wrong.David Price just signed with Boston. That’s what went wrong.

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