With Malice…

Reality landed firmly with a thud for the Yankees on Monday, in the form of a 6-4 loss to the Chicago White Sox at Cellular Field in Chicago.

New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner has a right to be angry. Vexed. Pissed. New York fans have a right to be feeling something MORE than frustrated. When you weigh the salaries they pay against the results the team produces, could anyone associated with MLB’s premier franchise be anything LESS than infuriated with a 6 games under .500 showing?

Ok… they won 2 outta 3 against the Boston Red Sox, cutting the lead the Sox hold from 13-and-a-half to 12-and-a-half (yippee?), and they should feel pleased about that - but the simple fact is that they still have to get past both Baltimore (1.5 games ahead) & Toronto (2 games ahead) before they can even consider Boston. And they’ve given the Red Sox a huge buffer! Is it ok to set your sights on chasing the wildcard this early in June? I don’t think they have a choice - catching Boston would necessitate not only a massive turn-around on the Yankees fortunes, but a reversal of fortune for the Bo’ Sox would be required as well.

Chasing the wildcard is going to be a tall order too. Currently the Yanks find themselves well behind Detroit (8 games over .500), Seattle (3 games over - now there’s a surprising performance), Oakland and Minnesota (a game a piece)… but at least those targets are possibilities, if somewhat remote.

And even forgetting about the performance as a team, do you think Steinbrenner’s impressed with ever-growning injury list (including my personal favourite oft-injured player: Carl Pavano, who has pitched less than 20 games as a Yankee… for $10 million a year. Nice work if you can get it)? With Jason Giambi’s mouth? With A-Rod’s frequent faux pas, on field and off? With Johnny Damon’s lack-lustre performance? Nuh-uh… and my gut tells me that we’re in for a response from the big guy…

So… what can be done (some suggestions for George… haha)?

• Trade for pitching help, or another bat… really difficult to trade huge stars, as they often have ‘no-trade’ clauses in their contracts. But Johnny Damon doesn’t. Trade him & get some help. Abreu could well be on that chopping block too…
• Make sure that the team just shut up, and keep clean. The recent issues with players speaking out against each other, Giambi’s calls for MLB apologies (followed up by leaks of a drug test failure) & A-Rod’s activities - both on & off the diamond - only serve to highlight the lack of success on the field. Steinbrenner won’t let ‘em have beards, or long hair. You figure he’s happy about this? Get them to shut up, and play ball.
• Be wary of The Rocket. Sure, Roger Clemens may well be a salve to the wounds the Yankees pitching rotation currently wears… but if the team continues it’s downward spiral, his contract could add to further dissention within the clubhouse.
• Review the performance of both Joe Torre, and Brian Cashman. If they’re not up to scratch, dump ‘em. Torre’s been living on past performance for quite a while now. Yes, he’s a great manager… but any one person has only so much to give a team, then it becomes stale. Time to move on. Cashman’s recent acquisitions don’t speak too highly of him (I mean… Kei Igawa?). Review, and if necessary, remove.

One of the huge problems facing the New York is that they DO have so many stars. With a team laden with a Milky-Galaxy array of stars, how do you tell them - “I’m sitting you this week”… or “Time to spend a little time in the minors, get your stuff back together”… impossible. Dealing with bigger contracts means dealing with bigger egos. And dealing with the media response to sitting/pulling a star as well. This all leads to an inflexibility in the starting lineup that has to be worrying for Torre & his coaching staff. Still… massaging egos has certainly been something that Torre has excelled at over his tenure.

One wonders if that’s enough tho’. Perhaps fire ‘n’ brimstone is exactly what’s needed to kick the Yankees out of their stupor…

Wait… Lou Piniella’s on the phone!