(It’s been a strangely quiet offseason for Brian Cashman – via SLive.com)
by Kevin Kunzmann (@KevKunzmann)
MLB Columnist for The Grandstand Gazette
Did you hear that? A pin just dropped in Brian Cashman’s office. Not many offseasons go by so inaudibly, so casually — and so strangely — for the Yankees as the winter of 2013 has. If you were to look back, the Yanks essentially became the kings of free agency with the signing of Reggie Jackson in 1977, arguably the first great free agent signing in baseball history. Steinbrenner generated a legacy that was fueled by constant success, which was fueled by constant transaction activity, which was fueled by constant currency, which was fueled by the legacy. There’s a pecking order for players on the move: players “to be named later”, then utility players, then starters, then All-Stars, and then the few who will become New York Yankees. That’s why something isn’t right about the Bronx’s low-key winter; the biggest name to earn pinstripes was Kevin Youkilis? They let Russell Martin, Nick Swisher, and Rafael Soriano walk, signed Andy Pettite, Mariano Rivera, Brett Gardner, and Hideki Kuroda to one-year deals, and compensated for their lack of a designated hitter and Alex Rodriguez’s injury with a one-year deal with Kevin Youkilis. What?
If nothing else was to happen until April, New York will be starting Eduardo Nunez (48 career RBI) at DH, Youkilis (career-worst .235 average in 2012) at third, Derek Jeter (38 years old, recovering from broken ankle) at shortstop, and Francisco Cervelli (played three games in 2012) behind the plate. What part of that carries that Yankee legacy? Of course, Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira, and Robinson Cano are consistent 30/100/.300 threats, but how will they fare with Ichiro or Gardner potentially leading off? Was Swisher’s plate presence a larger factor in the array of pitches they may have seen? How many quality pitches will they see without Rodriguez hitting behind them? And how about the fact that none of the lineup’s four right-handers have the potential to hit with legitimate power? You likely see a drop in Cano and Granderson’s production, with a questionable Jeter and Youkilis expected to compensate. Both men exited their prime about two years ago.
The pitching is seasoned, and primed for classic playoff series. The bullpen is fine as long as the names “Robertson” and “Rivera” grace its presence. My point is not that the Yankees look bad — I would do drastic things for any one of their 3-6 hitters — but that everyone else is starting to look better. The Red Sox are young again, and made the smartest move of anyone this offseason by giving Bobby Valentine the boot. There is not a single team better at winning one-run games than the Baltimore Orioles, and the Blue Jays went from tepid to scalding with two separate — but equally insane — transactions. Also, the Rays made up for a dull lineup with depth of role players and a great-as-always rotation. As it was, New York scraped away with the division in 2012, and the following Baltimore series made it clear that this should have been another offseason of Yankee splurging. Instead, Cashman folded early, and only one explanation is left: the Bombers are rebuilding.
The same silent phenomena has been taking place just a Borough away in Mr. Anderson’s office, only the spectacle surrounding the Mets is a little less severe: the Amazin’s try to keep up with their Bronx counterparts come the Winter Meetings, but often concede for an older Pedro Martinez or a horrible Jason Bay. This year? Shawn Marcum, oh, and maybe Michael Bourne. Dickey was dealt, Hairston wasn’t offered anything, Alderson admitted to failing to get involved in the Upton trade, and the Mets are left with a quality infield, promising pitching, and a dreadful outfield. But that’s okay, because time is on their side; David Wright was their oldest everyday position player at 29 last season, and nobody in the projected starting rotation tops 27 — except Santana. At some point in the next five years, barring the reincarnation of Oliver Perez, I could be buying a Mets playoff ticket. And that is enough for me to concede that Alderson’s move to not make a move was the right move this winter. In fact, it must have been much easier than the decision Cashman has been bestowed by the factor of time: Jeter, Rodriguez, Ichiro, Petitte, Rivera, and C.C Sabathia are an average age of 38, and it can be easily argued that Cano is the only everyday player to be currently reaching his prime — he will turn 31 this season. The team can collectively win for another few years, but then why would Cashman negate to re-sign key role players while dishing out one-year extensions? This very well may be the last run of what some may consider the best era of Yankee baseball. It’s hard to imagine how much more Rivera and Pettite want to go through, how much Jeter can give before age catches up, how soon before Rodriguez’s past runs him out of town, how many seasons Sabathia can spend as a workhorse.
Is “re-building” a phase that the Yankees are immune to? No, they’re just better than everyone else at it — like nearly everything else. I’ll reiterate again that the Yankees are a good team, on and off paper, but it has been so long since their last transition from old to young that this one might be rough. So many names, so many wins, so many moments from this era are on their way to baseball legend, and so much of it is from the Yankees. But, the fact remains: Kevin Youkilis. I might be the typical New York fan saying it — I may even be paranoid — but it was a quiet Bronx winter. Almost too quiet.
