Dear Diary, why is the richest team in baseball on a budget and why are all the expensive players hurt all the time? The Yankees, worth an estimated $8 Billion, where eliminated in the American League Division series by the Tampa Bay Rays on October 7th. They were swept off the field, as Aaron Judge looked on helplessly from the bench, injured. His plight was not novel on this team of fragile stars.
It makes sense to keep a diary about the Yankees, and their manifest problems this season. Slugger Aaron Judge, maybe the best hitter in baseball, missed more than half of the regular season, and the entire playoffs. Giacarlo Stanton missed almost the entire season but returned for the playoffs. They were but two of the many injured players for the Yankees. Can you name them all?
Diary of a Yankees Fan #2
The list of high-priced Yankees who missed significant time this season is staggering. Not only did Judge miss half of the season, and the entire playoff. Giancarlo Stanton missed almost the entire season, but returned to pinch hit, and strikeout in the playoffs. They were just two of the injured players this season.
Max Fried, who started the game last night, was twice on the injured list. Gerrit Cole, who warmed up in the bullpen last night, missed all of last season and part of this season after his elbow was reconstructed. Clarke Schmidt had the same surgery and missed this entire season, though he teased us with an ill-fated comeback near the end of the season. There are more, though that is about a billion dollars. Certainly, diary worthy.
Other players who missed part or all of the seasons include relief pitchers Luis Gil, Kervin Castro, Angel Chivilli, and Fernando Cuz. Starting pitcher Luis Gil joined the walking wounded. So did infielders Ryan Mcmahon and Jazz Chishiolm Jr. Gil was the rookie of the year in the American League two years ago.
When one considers the list of injured players it is a high-priced All-Star team, and a convenient excuse. You can bet manager Aaron Boone and general manager Brian Cashman, will use the injuries as an excuse for the poor performance. However, the injury situation did not change much between the destruction of the Red Sox, and the pathetic effort against the Rays. Maybe we should ask our diary.
Budget for the Team?
While his father, George Steinbrenner, was willing to spend any amount. However, he passed away in 2010, and his son, Hal Stienbrenner is now the managing partner of the team. That might not seem like much of a change, but it is a major one. Whereas his father would spend any amount to bring a winner to the Bronx, Hal is afraid of surpassing the third salary threshold and having to pay a luxury tax. When you consider the Yankees have so much money tied up in a few stars, like injured stars Judge, Stanton, Cole, and Rodon, the reluctance to exceed the third salary threshold is perplexing, diary worthy.
Conclusion
The Yankees had a lot of injured players this season. These were major loses because they were stars who played marquee positions. They were mostly serious injuries as well, that cost a lot of time. That fact leaves fans of the team scratching their heads and writing in diaries. it will be interesting to see which of these injured players have played their last game for the team.
Don't stop here
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