Can the Yankees avoid the missteps of the Red Sox and Mariners?

25 of 25

(Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

A Run For the Roses So Red

Finally is that free agency might not work out. History has taught us that the Yankees will add another big time player next year, as Boston and Seattle did before years two of their runs.

But Matt Holliday showed us that even high-priced free agents can disappoint, while Shohei Ohtani reminded everyone that not ever player wants to be a Yankee.

More from Yankees Minor Leagues

So, just because the Yankees plan to get a great player at exactly the right position of need for them, doesn’t mean it’s going to work out that way. Or that the player won’t have an unexpected injury or rapid decline in production.

The Yankees, Red Sox and Mariners all want to be where the Giants, Astros and Royals are or have recently been.

But only one of them can win it all next year, and the rest of baseball will have plenty to say about that, including Houston, both LA teams, and Cleveland.

Of the three discussed here, the Red Sox and Yankees have the best chances of winning a title next year. But it’s the Bronx Bombers who look more ready for a five or six year run of excellence: Severino and Bird are under team control through 2021, Judge and Sanchez through 2022.

Next: The Yankees, Major League Baseball and the Reaction to Scott Boras

There will be decisions before then, though. Sonny Gray and Didi Gregorius become free agents after the 2019 season, and CC will have to be replaced next year. If the Yankees spend their money wisely at those moments or trade the right prospects, they could create the kind of run the Giants recently had.

Or, even better, that the Yankees once had twenty years ago.

But nothing is guaranteed. And the Yankees would do well to remember that the best laid plans of Mariners and men often go astray.

Home/Yankees Minor Leagues