The roster construction of the New York Yankees remains central to their debacle in this season and it is likely to obstruct their rebuilding for the upcoming season. All veterans have contracts assuring sky-high salaries but are devoid of anything that the team can enforce to seek their accountability. From badly negotiated deals to no-trade clauses, the contracts exemplify the problems the Yankees are dealing with.
The woeful 2023 season has mercifully reached its conclusion for the Yankees, leaving only two individuals immune to the onslaught of criticisms that have besieged the beleaguered ball club: right-handed pitcher Gerrit Cole and right fielder Aaron Judge. Both players are currently on Hall of Fame trajectories, and the Yankees have already squandered valuable time in their prime years with mediocrity as the backdrop.
The team’s woes extend beyond failed analytical experiments involving one-dimensional players and encompass a litany of issues, including contractual flaws, communication breakdowns, and deficiencies in four critical areas: athleticism, contact hitting, speed, and quality left-handed hitters.
Yankees spend big without any assured result
A poignant moment captured by the YES Network featured Judge sitting alone in the dugout after the Yankees’ final regular-season loss to the lowly Kansas City Royals. As he watched a 106-loss team celebrate a 5-2 victory, Judge’s body language conveyed a profound sense of frustration. One can only imagine the depths of his anger and disappointment, given that he returned to the Yankees with expectations far greater than a nine-year, $360 million free-agent contract could capture.
The Yankees began the season with the second-highest Opening Day payroll, totaling $275,249,873 according to the Associated Press. Furthermore, they are poised to become a repeat Competitive Balance Tax (CBT) payer this offseason. While exact CBT calculations aren’t finalized until the season’s end, it’s reasonable to anticipate that the Yankees will incur a substantial penalty for their lackluster 82-win campaign, marked by an absence from the postseason.
The 2023 base tax threshold is set at $233 million, with additional surcharge thresholds of $253 million and $273 million, as outlined in the current collective bargaining agreement. As a potential two-time CBT payer, the Yankees would be subject to a 30% tax on the base tax threshold, a 42% tax rate for exceeding the first surcharge threshold, and a staggering 75% tax rate for surpassing the second surcharge threshold, based on prevailing projections.
In 2022, the Yankees found themselves as first-time CBT payers under the current collective bargaining agreement. They incurred a penalty of $9.7 million for surpassing both the base tax threshold of $230 million and the first surcharge threshold of $250 million, with a total payroll of $267,753,417 as reported by Cot’s Baseball Contracts. Over the years, extending from the inception of CBT penalties in 2003 through the 2022 season, the Yankees have borne the burden of these penalties on a staggering 17 occasions, accumulating a grand total of $358 million in penalties, according to the Associated Press. This era of unprecedented payroll spending has seen the Yankees secure two American League pennants (in 2003 and 2009) and one World Series championship (in 2009).
Contractual flaws continue to bite the Yankees
However, looking ahead to the offseason, the Yankees face a complex situation with four veteran players who could potentially complicate their planning. Beyond the financial considerations and concerns regarding diminishing performance, each of these players has contractual clauses involving full or limited no-trade protection.
Cot’s Baseball Contracts offers crucial information concerning contract structure, including details about club options, buyouts, and how Competitive Balance Tax implications come into play. Giancarlo Stanton, who serves as the designated hitter and outfielder, is currently owed a substantial $128 million over the course of the next five seasons. As part of the trade agreement in December 2017 that brought Stanton to the Yankees from the Miami Marlins, the Marlins are responsible for paying the Yankees $30 million. However, these payments, totaling $5 million each, won’t commence until 2026, occurring semiannually.
Effectively, the Yankees will shoulder the burden of paying Stanton at least $98 million, encompassing a $10 million buyout for the 2028 season. If the Yankees choose to exercise the 2028 club option, it will come with a price tag of $25 million—a significant sum for a player who posted a -0.8 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) in the past season, based on calculations by Baseball-Reference. According to Spotrac, the 33-year-old Stanton missed 47 days of play due to a hamstring injury, during which time he earned $8,086,021 of his $32 million salary for the season.
Carlos Rodón, the left-handed pitcher, had a challenging debut season in the Bronx, with a hefty $135 million owed to him over the next five years. He struggled, posting a 6.85 earned run average across 14 starts and striking out 64 batters, as per Baseball-Reference. DJ LeMahieu, a versatile utility player, remains under contract for three more years, with a total of $45 million in salary commitments. Meanwhile, first baseman Anthony Rizzo is set to earn $17 million for the upcoming 2024 season and has a club option for 2025 worth $17 million, with a $6 million buyout. In terms of their performance, Rodón ended the season with a -0.8 WAR for Pitchers, while LeMahieu and Rizzo combined for a 1.8 WAR.
Will the Yankees audit take cognizance of these?
As the Yankees prepare for a comprehensive evaluation conducted by an independent consulting firm, it is imperative that they use their sense of urgency and desperation as motivation for change. They must take a critical look at their communication strategies concerning the integration of analytics into the clubhouse culture. The Yankees should make a deliberate effort to understand how players analyze, interpret, and apply data to their daily routines. This requires a mature approach where the team steps back and recognizes the diverse learning styles of their players. Merely providing world-class athletes with data visualizations on an iPad and expecting immediate changes, while ignoring years of experience and baseball instincts, is insufficient.
The key is to identify who is delivering the message within the organization and the teaching techniques employed to foster a learning-friendly environment. The Yankees must assess how they measure improvement and mastery of content, ensuring that the right metrics are used to enhance performance through instruction. It’s possible that the team may need to rethink how they present data, regardless of their significant investments in analytics and innovation. The process should not be mechanical and condescending; instead, it should be a collaborative effort aimed at the best interests of the players.
While fans are already dreaming of the “Hot Stove” season and the potential acquisitions of players like Shohei Ohtani, Cody Bellinger, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Juan Soto, the Yankees must navigate the intricacies of free agency, the Japanese posting system, and the control of arbitration-eligible players, which present a spectrum of challenges.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Yo, bro, there IS NO INDEPENDENT CONSULTING FIRM! It’s a self-exam conducted by parties with self-preservation as their primary criterion.
Hal (aka Boy George) needs to buy out the contracts of non-performers like Stanton and Cashman (yes, Cashman). It’s cheaper than the price of paying them in both million$ AND absorbing their pathetic swings and misses.
That is simple math.