New York Yankees: Approaching the offseason like it’s 2013
By Sean Dyer
The New York Yankees are cutting back their spending in hopes of getting under the luxury tax threshold. But what if they approached free agency with the same mentality as they did in 2013?
Let’s party like it’s 2013! For the New York Yankees, that means throwing money around like there’s a meteor headed straight for the Bronx.
When the 2013 season ended for the Yankees, Brian Cashman was left looking at a roster of baseball senior citizens that somehow won 85 games, thanks to the brilliance of Joe Girardi.
In order to fix his aging veteran problem, Cashman made it his mission to sign as many more aging veterans as the Steinbrenners would allow him to.
The result? A three-year/$45 million contract to a soon-to-be 37-year-old Carlos Beltran, a five-year/$85 million contract to a soon-to-be 30-year-old Brian McCann, a seven-year/$153 million contract to a 30-year-old Jacoby Ellsbury, and a seven-year/$155 million contract to a 25-year-old Masahiro Tanaka.
This was an exciting offseason for Yankee fans but Cashman’s strategy was flawed from the start. Giving that much money over that many years to three players on the wrong side of 30 is never a good idea.
Cashman and the Yankees have learned from their past offseason mistakes as they hope to get under the $197 million luxury tax threshold this offseason (even if it is just so they can spend close to half a billion dollars on the 2018-19 free agent class).
This offseason should resemble last offseason when the Yankees “re-signed” one of their own by signing Aroldis Chapman to a five-year/$86 million deal, signed Matt Holliday to a one-year/$13 million contract, and signed Chris Carter (ugh) to a one-year/$3.5 million deal.
Yes, they handed out the largest contract any relief pitcher has ever seen but by their own standards, last offseason was a quiet one for the New York Yankees.
Another quiet offseason this year is sensible. It’s economical. It’s what the Yankees should do. But it’s not fun and exciting!
So let’s pretend it’s 2013 and we can spend money like it’s going out of style! Let’s imagine what the New York Yankees’ offseason would look like this year if they were operating like they did four years ago.
All contract information is courtesy of spotrac.com.