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Yankees News: Hal Steinbrenner Not Interested In Selling Yanks

By Arthur Greenberg|

It’s hard to read Hal Steinbrenner.

He is an articulate, educated, reserved man. In two out of three adjectives, he’s a lot like his dad, George.

And yet, to follow such a force of nature inevitably evokes questions from the New York Yankees fan base. Let’s see if I can sum it up…

“Do you really like running this team?”

Because compared to his excitable, impulsive father, Hal Steinbrenner is a neoconservative baseball owner. He will spend, but his wallet opens only in times of desperation, and for players that he considers worth it. If 2007 Roger Clemens were available during the 2015 midseason, you can bet that Hal would not shell out $28 million to put him back in pinstripes. 

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Last year, the Dodgers surpassed the Yankees for the highest payroll in baseball, and during the winter, the Yankees missed out on most of the top free agents, signing only Andrew Miller, and he was just to replace the outgoing David Robertson. They re-signed Chase Headley for half of what Pablo Sandoval received, and Headley is arguably every bit as good as Sandoval.

With this relative austerity, and mediocre results (excluding 2009, which was won only after outlaying a Georgian $500 million on CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira, and A.J. Burnett) have some fans wondering if Hal is the right man for this job.

His interview this week with Michael Kay and Don LaGreca may put those fans at ease.

“People see me as not passionate — that’s certainly not the case. I may control it better.”

We don’t spend much time with you, Hal, so we’ll have to take your word for that.

“I keep it inside, but believe me, I tend to throw something at the TV, as most of our fans do.”

Alright, that’s enough. You’re embarrassing yourself.

With Forbes valuing the Yankees at $3.2 billion, it would be a good time to jump ship (no pun intended). Hal has no intention of doing so.

“No, it’s not enticing in any way shape or form. It’s a family business. Many of us are involved from the family and we know this is what our dad would want, to carry on the tradition. We’re not going anywhere.”

This may provide some comfort to the fan base, but it’s still a harsh reminder that George is no longer with us, and there are now limits and conditions that Brian Cashman must respect as he tries to swim upstream. The league penalizes spending now more than it ever has, and parity is the name of the game. Hal understands this.

Yankees fans are still coming around to the idea of fairness and equality for all teams. And that is why we throw things at our televisions, or yell at our stereos as we sit in traffic on the BQE. Despite his insistence, something still tells me Hal doesn’t wear pinstripes to sleep.

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