Davey Rootbeer
05-04-2005, 07:58 AM
And it sure as heck ain't dandy to be a yankee fan these days. Most of you are probably too young to really remember the last time this team fell apart the way it has through the first 25 games of the season, putting them 6 and a half back of...BALTIMORE?
From the strike-shortened 1994 to just last season, the yanks were at the top of the divisuon or runner-up EVERY YEAR. Of course it's nowhere as impressive as the Braves' run, but these yanks did something the braves couldn't: string together 4 world championships in 5 years, achieving a dynasty that hadn't been seen around these parts since the days of Jackson, Martin, and Munson.
These aren't the same Yankees which caused American League managers to pull out their hair in the 50's. THey aren't the same machine that entertained fans and sent pitchers to an early grave during the happy-go-lucky 20's, and even into the depression, the iconic Babe Ruth remained an imposing figure, with a shadow that engulfed the entire length of death valley out in left-center. And then his years caught up with him, and he plummetted faster than a Mike Scott forkball.
Perhaps babe ruth is a symbol of this team now.
Not the young whiz kid out of baltimore harbour, pitching 3-hitters and smacking the ball around fenway (and later, Yankee Stadium) as if it were a drunken fly.
The Old, fat, sick Babe Ruth.
He could still draw crowds from all over the world, but that's all he was good for at that point. Just an old guy with a glorious past, an ability to draw crowds, and no talent left.
Just the kind of guys that steinbrenner goes after.
He should have learned his lesson in the early 80's. After purchasing the team from CBS in the mid 70's, he went out on the newly formed free agent market, and lured talent over. There was Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, and Tommy John. You mix that in with a bright young crop with Thurman Munson, Willie Randolph, and Louisiana Lighnin', Ron Guidry, and you have a team that wins 4 pennants over a 6 year span, including 2 world championships. A team that constantly battled with eachother, and made the front cover of the sports page (and a couple of articles on the front page too!) every day. a balance of superstars and homebrewed talent, the magical formula that took it all the way for Martin and Lemon.
Steinbrenner gambled yet again on the free agent market, willing to pay a price, any price, for success. and he was willing to give up the farm system for already-established players. The result? The yanks went on a drought that spanned Don Mattingly's career. Overpriced, underachieving former stars came over in the bunches, The minor leagues were gutted to be used for trade bait, and for 12 years, the yankees went fishing for bass in october instead of pop flies.
Steinbrenner experienced his troubles, getting suspended from the game for a while, getting in legal trouble for getting caught hiring a private snoop to tail Dave Winfield to see if he was cheating on his contract, and giving millions of dollars to prima donna Rickey Henderson to talk in the third person and steal bases when he felt like it.
There's a seinfeld episode that sums it up. "Jay Buhner for Ken Phelps???"
The yankees of the late 80's and early 90's were a perfect reflection on the character of George Costanza, in a way. Underachieving to the point of laughability, biut refusing to make changes and adapt. Steinbrenner continued to go after the elderly, while across town, at Shea, the Mets pointed and laughed.
Then, in the early 90's, something special happened. Bernabe Williams Figueroa came up through the minor league system, as well as a couple of other guys named Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada, Andy Pettite, and Derek Jeter in '95. A core mix of solid, reliable veterans came in, to teach the young'uns. Paul O'Neill from the Reds, Wade Boggs from the SAWCKS. Darryl Strawberry from the rehab clinic, and John Wetteland, from Texas. They melded into one team, a team without superstars, for the first time in yankees history. there was no marquee name on the scorecard. Just a bunch of kids who knew how to play ball, and well.
It's been 10 years. The core of Jeter, Posada, Rivera, and Williams is aging rapidly. Pettite is gone, and all the veterans that helped the yanks come back to the top are retired. O'Neill's a broadcaster. Boggs just got in the Hall. Strawberry's back in the clinic. Wetteland's a pitching coach. The core of young players has become the veterans, supposed to teach the next crop of youngsters how the game is played.
Problem is, there ARE no more youngsters. The couple of bright spots on the farms have been given away to pay the salaries of the aging new...yep. Superstars. Christian Guzman? Gone, traded to the twins for Knoblach. Ted Lilly? Gone to toronto. Wily Mo Pena? Cincinnatti. Alfonzo Soriano? Traded for A-rod.
And what you have left, that you see before you right now, is a team with an average age of 33 years, by far the oldest in the majors.
After 2 years of being shut out of reaching the world series, steinbrenner went for an OLDER team. The pitching staff is anchored by 41-year old Randy Johnson, 40-year old Kevin Brown, and 36-year old Mike Mussina, making 29-year old Jaret Wright and 29-year old Carl Pavano the toddlers of the rotation, despite having 17 years of major league experience between them.
Dynasties don't last forever. what the braves have been able to do, since 1991, is constanly shuffle in and out new players, develop a solid farm, and build a core of good, young players, augmented by veterans, not the other way around.
If the yankees want to finish ahead of anyone in the AL east other than the sorry D-rays, they should look to Atlanta.
The sox broke "the curse of the bambino" in 2004. But now, the Yankees <i>are</i> the curse of the Bambino. Only this time, they're cursed with the other side of the Babe. the side that didn't know how to go out on top, the side that didn't know how to prepare for the future, the side that said "let's play for the now, and only for the now".
It's a ghost that'll stay there until King George opens his eyes and learns to win, all over again.
<sub> would you believe this is all from the top of my head? </sub>
From the strike-shortened 1994 to just last season, the yanks were at the top of the divisuon or runner-up EVERY YEAR. Of course it's nowhere as impressive as the Braves' run, but these yanks did something the braves couldn't: string together 4 world championships in 5 years, achieving a dynasty that hadn't been seen around these parts since the days of Jackson, Martin, and Munson.
These aren't the same Yankees which caused American League managers to pull out their hair in the 50's. THey aren't the same machine that entertained fans and sent pitchers to an early grave during the happy-go-lucky 20's, and even into the depression, the iconic Babe Ruth remained an imposing figure, with a shadow that engulfed the entire length of death valley out in left-center. And then his years caught up with him, and he plummetted faster than a Mike Scott forkball.
Perhaps babe ruth is a symbol of this team now.
Not the young whiz kid out of baltimore harbour, pitching 3-hitters and smacking the ball around fenway (and later, Yankee Stadium) as if it were a drunken fly.
The Old, fat, sick Babe Ruth.
He could still draw crowds from all over the world, but that's all he was good for at that point. Just an old guy with a glorious past, an ability to draw crowds, and no talent left.
Just the kind of guys that steinbrenner goes after.
He should have learned his lesson in the early 80's. After purchasing the team from CBS in the mid 70's, he went out on the newly formed free agent market, and lured talent over. There was Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, and Tommy John. You mix that in with a bright young crop with Thurman Munson, Willie Randolph, and Louisiana Lighnin', Ron Guidry, and you have a team that wins 4 pennants over a 6 year span, including 2 world championships. A team that constantly battled with eachother, and made the front cover of the sports page (and a couple of articles on the front page too!) every day. a balance of superstars and homebrewed talent, the magical formula that took it all the way for Martin and Lemon.
Steinbrenner gambled yet again on the free agent market, willing to pay a price, any price, for success. and he was willing to give up the farm system for already-established players. The result? The yanks went on a drought that spanned Don Mattingly's career. Overpriced, underachieving former stars came over in the bunches, The minor leagues were gutted to be used for trade bait, and for 12 years, the yankees went fishing for bass in october instead of pop flies.
Steinbrenner experienced his troubles, getting suspended from the game for a while, getting in legal trouble for getting caught hiring a private snoop to tail Dave Winfield to see if he was cheating on his contract, and giving millions of dollars to prima donna Rickey Henderson to talk in the third person and steal bases when he felt like it.
There's a seinfeld episode that sums it up. "Jay Buhner for Ken Phelps???"
The yankees of the late 80's and early 90's were a perfect reflection on the character of George Costanza, in a way. Underachieving to the point of laughability, biut refusing to make changes and adapt. Steinbrenner continued to go after the elderly, while across town, at Shea, the Mets pointed and laughed.
Then, in the early 90's, something special happened. Bernabe Williams Figueroa came up through the minor league system, as well as a couple of other guys named Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada, Andy Pettite, and Derek Jeter in '95. A core mix of solid, reliable veterans came in, to teach the young'uns. Paul O'Neill from the Reds, Wade Boggs from the SAWCKS. Darryl Strawberry from the rehab clinic, and John Wetteland, from Texas. They melded into one team, a team without superstars, for the first time in yankees history. there was no marquee name on the scorecard. Just a bunch of kids who knew how to play ball, and well.
It's been 10 years. The core of Jeter, Posada, Rivera, and Williams is aging rapidly. Pettite is gone, and all the veterans that helped the yanks come back to the top are retired. O'Neill's a broadcaster. Boggs just got in the Hall. Strawberry's back in the clinic. Wetteland's a pitching coach. The core of young players has become the veterans, supposed to teach the next crop of youngsters how the game is played.
Problem is, there ARE no more youngsters. The couple of bright spots on the farms have been given away to pay the salaries of the aging new...yep. Superstars. Christian Guzman? Gone, traded to the twins for Knoblach. Ted Lilly? Gone to toronto. Wily Mo Pena? Cincinnatti. Alfonzo Soriano? Traded for A-rod.
And what you have left, that you see before you right now, is a team with an average age of 33 years, by far the oldest in the majors.
After 2 years of being shut out of reaching the world series, steinbrenner went for an OLDER team. The pitching staff is anchored by 41-year old Randy Johnson, 40-year old Kevin Brown, and 36-year old Mike Mussina, making 29-year old Jaret Wright and 29-year old Carl Pavano the toddlers of the rotation, despite having 17 years of major league experience between them.
Dynasties don't last forever. what the braves have been able to do, since 1991, is constanly shuffle in and out new players, develop a solid farm, and build a core of good, young players, augmented by veterans, not the other way around.
If the yankees want to finish ahead of anyone in the AL east other than the sorry D-rays, they should look to Atlanta.
The sox broke "the curse of the bambino" in 2004. But now, the Yankees <i>are</i> the curse of the Bambino. Only this time, they're cursed with the other side of the Babe. the side that didn't know how to go out on top, the side that didn't know how to prepare for the future, the side that said "let's play for the now, and only for the now".
It's a ghost that'll stay there until King George opens his eyes and learns to win, all over again.
<sub> would you believe this is all from the top of my head? </sub>