Twitter just had a poignant picture of a lot of Yankee personnel watching Luis Severino throw a bullpen. Young talent electrifies organizations. The Yanks are now in a position where guys like Severino, Clarkin, Judge, Bird, Hensley and others have to hit their absolute ceilings. What's more their crop of recent IFA's must produce some all-stars. That's a tall order for their re-jiggered development team - but it is what it is.
Fortunately, Hal's Wheel of Spending allowed the Yanks to keep the 16th and 30th picks in June's draft. The Yanks have to crush both of these picks, and really have another good draft to go with the last few. But that's about all they can do, having missed the Cuban market completely.
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I'm in a show-me phase. I don't believe in of their young players will be given an extended opportunity until it actually happens.
Some hot takes from a Red Sox fan, of all people, on the ESPNNY story of the Yankees passing on Moncada:
It's really perplexing. The Yankees spent $175 million ($155 contract + $20 signing fee) for 7 years just last year on Tanaka, a player who had never threw an inning in an MLB game. So the whole "never even played an inning in MLB" argument doesn't apply.
Moncada's cost was $63 million for 6 years ($31.5 contract + $31.5 tax).
For a Yankees team in desperate ned of youth, hitters and middle infielders (having lost cano & jeter the past 2 years), this seemed to me to be a no brainer.
Tanka's cost averaged out to $25 million/year. The Yankees only got a half year of value so far b/c he was hurt 2nd half of last season.
Moncada's average cost is a little over $10million/year over 6 years. Yes, he's expected to be in minors 1-2 years, but... even so, are the Yankees sweating an investment of $10 million?
Did Tanaka's injury (and fear his injury might resurface) scare them off another foreign player? They clearly wanted him. Several private workouts and a $25 million offer. That would've meant $50 million investment. The Yanks lost out to Sox & this kid over $13 million? Doesn't Hal spend that on downloadable App games in a month?
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Like Dice K was?
He was a Japanese legend. Roughly same age & resume as Tanaka.
He had basically 2 good seasons with Sox then injuries set in, mainly b/c in Japan they baby their pitchers. 6 day rotations, the ball is smaller, etc.
I agree with you that Moncada is a work in progress, but rarely do 19 year olds have scouting reports like this. It's not like Moncada's just out of High School. He's been playing competitively. It's why, even at 19, most think he'll be ready next season, 2017 the latest.
The issue I have with the Yankees (and full disclosure, I'm a red sox fan), is their minor league system, while improving, is still weak. Currently ranks #18. Moncada would've immediately become their top prospect.
He's currently going to be listed #2 with Boston, who has the 5th best minor league system.
And he's a middle infielder. For a team that lost Cano & Jeter that are in desperate need for a young star to build around.
Giancarlo Stanton is in Miami for the next 10 years, he's not available. Kershaw's in LA. There are no major stars to buy available.
The best way would be to develop.
If the Yankees were built to win in 2015, maybe I see them passing. But they're not. Tanaka, Betances, their young 1B, Didi, they could've added Moncada too.
They were willing to spend $50 million, but not $63 M?
What I'm kicking myself over is that I was dumb enough to think that, with the Tanaka signing, the Yankees had finally seen the error in their ways of passing on top international talent.
But that fan's two posts makes a point: What exactly was the logic here? That he wouldn't help the team right away? It's not like Tanaka was a sure thing, either.
I really can't wrap my mind around this decision-making process. There's no rhyme or reason to it.
The Tanaka signing and the IFA splurge made it seem like they finally got it. Even picking up Emery late and at a discount made the approach seem far more comprehensive that it turned out to be.
"That he wouldn't help the team right away?"
That's what I surmise.
"It's not like Tanaka was a sure thing, either."
That's where the Cashman/baseball people part comes in. What did they recommend in terms of cost/benefit and risk/reward?
"They were willing to spend $50 million, but not $63 M?"
Don't question Hal. He's a financial whiz.
I have my issues with Cashman, but everything I've read points to him/the baseball folks loving Moncada and Hal simply being unwilling to spend what it took.
The whole team, beginning with ownership, needs an overhaul, or nothing will change.
Maybe, but part of being a top executive is to know how to sell what you want to ownership.
An extreme example would be how Stick kept telling George that no one wanted Bernie in a trade when he was young.
That contains some risk.
Think about how different the team is now run, according to Cashman's own words, from the vision he laid out when he got more power in 2005.
Is it that his vision on how to construct a team has changed, or is it that his personal priorities changed?
The variable has been the change from Georg to Hal above him.
Btw, there's a new post on the Giants draft.
The most disappointing aspect is that this was really a DREAM scenario for the Yankees.
A potential middle of the order bat who plays in the middle of the infield? CHECK
Will he only cost money? CHECK
Can he be the new potential face of a franchise? CHECK
Is he young? CHECK
Keep him away from a rival? CHECK
Is this team unable to acquire this type of talent for 2 years? CHECK
GOD DAMNIT
That's only one variable.
The other is the decline of the core that has never been replaced.
The reverberation of the ownership change was massively apparent in the draft and IFA before the rules changed and that, in large part, is why the core was not replaced.
Just got to work and my computer is fried, along with an extensive list of important work contacts.
The company won't replace my Mac with a new one, but I'm getting someone else's Mac so they can give them the cheaper PC.
I think Hal Steinbrenner runs my company.
new post on the Yankees draft.
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