Yankees spending transformation, a strategic move, or a step back?
Despite their financial power, the Yankees have been unusually cautious this offseason. The Dodgers spent over $1 billion, adding Shohei Ohtani, with $700M as well as Yoshinobu Yamamoto, with $325M. However, the Yankees’ biggest move was trading for Juan Soto, without a long-period extension. This has guided some to question if the team is acting, like, a small-market team. Bryce Harper said last season that the Phillies, not the Yankees, now run the East as a large-market powerhouse. The Phillies’ payroll in 2024 reached $257 million, just $9 million less than the Yankees. The team has also invested over $900 million in stars, like, Trea Turner, $300M, Zack Wheeler, $118M and Aaron Nola, $172M in current years.
Is this cautious approach necessary for a team with the Yankees’ resources? The payroll-to-revenue ratio reveals a gap. The Yankees sat at 52 percent in 2023, after the Dodgers, 67 percent and Phillies at 62 percent. If such a trend continues, it could transform free agency. Mid-market teams like the Cubs, Mariners and Blue Jays could land stars they’d usually lose in bidding wars. It could also lower spending expectations for other big-market teams like the Red Sox and Giants. More importantly, it threatens the Yankees’ reputation. Once known for outspending everyone, they now seem hesitant. That hesitation could make it harder to attract top talent in the future.
Steinbrenner’s approach to link the Yankees with smaller-market teams feels disingenuous. With unmatched financial power, the Yankees should be setting the market, not retreating from it. Analysts aren’t just skeptical, they are outright offended. If this mindset continues, the Yankees risk losing more than just free agents; they risk losing their identity.
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