Bomber Bites With Jumping Joe–Does Prince Hal Have What It Takes To Win?

The Yankees are the most storied team in all of professional sports. They have won more World Series titles than any other team in history. However, they have not had much success recently. Their last title came in 2009. They last made the playoffs in 2012. The outlook for next season, barring any major changes, looks grim. But the worst part in the eyes of Yankee fans is the perception that ownership is not truly invested in winning. 

Mandatory Credit: Chad R. MacDonald.

George Steinbrenner was a lot of things during his three decade plus run as principal owner of the Yankees. He was an egocentric bully who meddled constantly with management and players. He was a reviled owner who “bought” championships. He was a bombastic fool who loved to see his face on the back page. But whatever else Steinbrenner was, everyone always agreed on one item of his personality. George wanted to win and was willing to do whatever it took to win. His youngest son Hal, however, does not seem to have that quality. Prince Hal seems more interested in brand management and profit margins than double plays and hit and runs. 

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Being more at home in an excel sheet than the dugout is not in and of itself a terrible thing. There are plenty of stat geeks and computer types throughout major league baseball these days. Most front offices have more MBAs and JDs on the walls than rings on fingers. The analytical approach to baseball is a valuable tool in developing a baseball team. The problem is that Hal is not a “Moneyball” sabermetric guy. He is not analyzing the latest advanced stat to try and get a minute advantage on the field. He just wants to make money. If the Yankees manage to win a few ballgames along the way great. If not, at least revenue went up.

George Steinbrenner cared about the number of championships his team won. He was always obsessed with the next number, 25, 26, 27 championships and so on. Hal is synonymous with the number $189,000,000. That is the payroll level he wishes to get under so that the Yankees can reset their luxury tax status. Paying less in luxury taxes means higher profit margins. Admittedly, getting out from under that luxury tax would be a help to the Yankees. However, Hal is not strong enough or have the conviction to go all in to get under that cap. Which despite last season’s free agent signing spree remains a goal of his.

"“There are obviously benefits to getting under $189, but the overall philosophy of mine is: shouldn’t be at $220, shouldn’t be at $230 to win world championships. Nobody else is.” (h/t Chad Jennings, The LoHud Yankees Blog)"

The mixed signals given by Hal has led to bizarre roster construction by GM Brian Cashman and the front office. On one hand, they fail to resign some of their own free agents most notably Russell Martin and Robinson Cano yet do not replace them in the lineup with major league quality players at the time. But then they find the money to sign aging sluggers like Carlos Beltran to multiyear deals and trade for other past their prime has beens like Vernon Wells, Ichiro Suzuki and Alfonso Soriano. The Yankees have one foot in a rebuilding mode and one in a go for it mode and the result is a mediocre team that misses the playoffs.

Hal can’t have it both ways. He cannot expect to cut payroll across the board and expect to fulfill the Yankee mission statement of winning the World Series each year. But he doesn’t see that. In his mind, since other teams have managed to win titles with lower payrolls, so should the Yankees. The problem is that while low budget teams can make it far, they generally cannot do so consistently. The idea that because the Royals made the World Series this year with a low payroll and therefor so should the Yankees is foolish because it fails to take into account the previous three decades in which the Royals were a terrible team.

"“We’re going to be competitors again. … A lot of work to be done. There’s certainly some positions need to be filled, but we’ve got a good core of veterans right now, and what I’m excited about is we saw some young kids like the (Shane) Greenes last year come up and contribute, and (John Ryan) Murphy, and you’re going to see some more next year.”                                                                                                      (h/t Chad Jennings, The LoHud Yankees Blog)"

But Hal remains optinistic for next season, and really what choice does he have but to remain optimistic. Afterall, the Yankees did turn a nice profit last season.