LIKE A BOSS
WHAT would the Yankees do?
No, not these Yankees. But the caricature of the Yankees that grew under George Steinbrenner, in which they would not only be signing Bryce Harper this offseason but also Le’Veon Bell and trading for Jimmy Butler while putting Migos on retainer for all home national anthems.
That image has been slowly fading under the patience of Hal Steinbrenner, the logic of Brian Cashman, luxury-tax threshold considerations and the realization that young and talented is a better roster model than old and famous.
But is it possible to marry what was and what is? What if the Red Sox winning a fourth title in 15 seasons — compared to one for the Yankees — triggered something in the organizational DNA (and Hal Steinbrenner’s actual DNA) to behave like a Boss? Is there a pathway in which the Yankees bludgeon wisely (or at least as wisely as possible) when wielding a thick wallet to end up with Patrick Corbin, Corey Kluber and Manny Machado?
For what it is worth, this would not be my pathway. I would shun mega-contracts as much as possible and I would definitely avoid having two on one payroll (as would come if the Yankees had Giancarlo Stanton and Machado). Plus, I would never enter into such a pact with a player I felt less than great about on and off the field. So, yes to Mookie Betts, Francisco Lindor and Mike Trout. Meanwhile, Machado would not be my cup of tea.
However, I sense the Yankees are, at minimum, intrigued by Machado, and his signing would give them latitude to use Miguel Andujar as the central trade piece to obtain Kluber — taking a logical leap that the Indians like the AL Rookie of the Year runner-up enough to deal their ace. Imagine 10 years at $330 million for Machado, six years at $126 million for Corbin (the Yu Darvish pact from last offseason) and the assumption of Kluber’s Indians contract, which, if his 2020-21 options are picked up, has three years at $52.5 million left, but costs just $11.3 million toward the luxury tax in 2019.
In all, presuming the Yankees trade Sonny Gray, this would take the Yankees to about $230 million in 2019 — a bit less if they can pay Jacoby Ellsbury down to $5 million a year to trade him to a team such as Arizona or Seattle, but a bit more if they still wanted a reliever and versatile lefty bat. That is more than Hal Steinbrenner wants to invest — and quite frankly, despite the myth that grew that George would spend whatever was necessary, he often said “no” to big outlays.
Hal is on record saying multiple times he does not think a $200 million-plus payroll is necessary to win a title. But it still would be under the $246 million level for the worst penalties next year and less than the Red Sox spent to capture a title in 2018 and likely what Boston’s 2019 payroll will be as well. Steinbrenner told me this month
his
preference is to stay below the threshold, but he has made exceptions in the past — like with the signing of Masahiro Tanaka — to blow by that level if he thought it would make a significant difference in chasing a title. Could he become convinced Machado is that level of difference-maker? I keep wondering if Alex Rodriguez sees enough of himself in Machado to use his Yankees-adviser-to-the-owner role to recommend a signing.
And in some ways, Machado and Kluber are attached. The Yankees have traded many prospects in the past 24 months, and Clint Frazier, whom they wielded to try to land Gerrit Cole last offseason, has lost prospect luster by, among other things, missing a significant portion of 2018 due to the effects of a concussion. Perhaps the Yankees have enough left to assemble a package for Seattle’s James Paxton without Andujar. But it would seem impossible to do it for Kluber, who turns 33 in April but has been a top-three Cy Young finisher in four of the past five years.
Machado would provide short-term shortstop protection while Didi Gregorius recovers from Tommy John surgery and then would move to third to team with Gregorius to provide a brilliant left side of the infield. Machado is just 26, so he is a long-term piece. The Yanks would remain overly righthanded also with Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez and Stanton and regain the perception of a team that chases titles with cash.
But certainly with a rotation fronted by Kluber, Corbin, Tanaka and Luis Severino, they would be viewed as even more of a championship possibility. The $43 million annual outlay for Tanaka and Ellsbury expires after the 2020 season, providing some financial room as the Yankees also have to think about extending Gregorius (a free agent after this season) and enduring steadily higher raises in the coming years for Judge, Sanchez and Severino.
It all likely gets too expensive and projects to a near future of roster inflexibility. So, the most likely Yankees course this offseason is to simply buy starters such as Corbin and J.A. Happ, believe the work ethic of Andujar will lead to an average defender to go along with an above-average bat while continuing to deepen the pen and find a versatile lefty bat.
But there is a George winter possible that could be launched — Corbin, Kluber, Machado — if Hal wants to go back to the future.