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

Sometimes, The Runner Stumbles

But, what were the M’s to do? They had already invested heavily in King Felix, Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz, all through at least the 2018 season. That was their original window, and it is now closing.

And that is partially because they faced a two-headed monster the last two seasons: As their offense has struggled to find an identity, their pitching has continued to regress.

Their King has continued his rapid and unexpected decline, last year pitching to a 4.36 ERA; he is no longer one of the best pitchers in baseball.

And even though James Paxton blossomed into a dominant pitcher, and is now Seattle’s worthy candidate as best pitcher in the AL, his 2.98 ERA performance was sandwiched between those of two much worse pitchers.

Ariel Miranda and Yovani Gallardo, along with Paxton, led the team in games started. But Miranda posted a 5.12 while Yovani threw up a 5.72. And with all due respect to Willie Nelson, one night of love don’t make up for two nights of hate.

No, the answer should have been to go all in.