Posts
8:01 AM
Hal Steinbrenner will have the final say on financial matters for the Yankees.The best part of this is that Hal Steinbrenner can do it his own way now. He doesn't have to do it with back pages and headlines and threats and being louder than New York City traffic, because everything we have seen from him so far indicates that it isn't his style. Hal Steinbrenner, who was always going to be the guy in charge no matter what his older brother kept saying, who was quietly learning the business while his brother kept talking, can do it his own way and make his own way.
And because the Yankees are such a big deal around here and always will be, there is no reason to root against him, no reason to hope he does anything besides do things right, and with some style. This is good for the Yankees and good for baseball, which did not want Hank to be the one in charge.
Hal is a Steinbrenner and these are the Yankees, and so of course they're going to spend as much money as it takes to get back on top, at least to get past the Red Sox and Rays and get back in the playoffs. These are the Yankees and you know that if they can somehow make the payroll come in at less than it was last season - even if $200 million-plus puts them so far ahead of the field it's ridiculous - they will act as if they have somehow balanced the federal budget.
HAL NAMED NEW YANKEE BOSS
Or maybe act as if they're clipping coupons to get by.
But there is no rule that has ever been passed, at either Yankee Stadium or Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, that Hal Steinbrenner has to talk just to talk, the way others in his family have since what feels like the beginning of time, about C.C. Sabathia or anything else.
"We've made (Sabathia) an offer, but it's not going to be there forever," Hal said the other day.
The offer is reported to be $140 million, and that is a significant number, because it is a bit north of what the Mets paid Johan Santana, for whom the Yankees did not want to trade one year ago. It may not seem like a huge disparity, but this is a culture where athletes keep score about money that will never affect a single day of the rest of their lives, where there is this giant imaginary scoreboard only they (and their agents) care about, even at a time when the economy of this country is going to hell in a shopping cart.
It has been going on since the beginning of time, since Ted Williams told the Red Sox he wanted to be paid only a dollar more than DiMaggio. So the Yankees come in with a contract that is bigger than Santana's and Sabathia is supposed to take it because it isn't just huge money, because it is huge Yankee money, and when the Yankees money-whip somebody like this they're always supposed to get their man.
And maybe he will in the end, even though what we hear about the big guy is that he would prefer being on the West Coast and prefer being in the National League because he likes to hit. Maybe he will because the money is so huge, and because when you are the top guy out there, you are under tremendous pressure from a fading players' union to take it, because that helps the next biggest guy out there (not just in weight) and the next guy after that.
But here's the deal on this deal:
Talking tough, even for a sentence, doesn't make Sabathia come here. And talk like this ultimately means nothing. The Yankees, and the Steinbrenners, know that better than anybody, because of what happened a year ago with Alex Rodriguez, everybody's All-America.
You remember how everybody rolled on that one. Or rolled over, as the case may be. If A-Rod opted out, the way he did during Game 4 of the 2007 World Series, that was it, the Yankees were through with him, goodbye. Only before you knew it, not only was A-Rod on his way back to third base at the old Stadium and back into the cleanup spot, he was getting a whole lot more money, what could turn out to be $300 million worth of money, than the Yankees were going to offer him BEFORE he opted out.
Hal Steinbrenner doesn't have to do it the way his father did. Nobody is going to do it that way and nobody should try and it's been occasionally pathetic over the last couple of years watching as our business has tried to turn Hank into the second coming of the old man.
The fact is that the Yankees need Sabathia a lot worse than he needs them. The Yankees are never cheap. Talk is.
***
Donnie Walsh is doing so many things right, you don't want to be a tough grader on anything with this guy.
But he shouldn't have come into this season with Stephon Marbury a member of the Knicks organization, and he should not have come into this season with Isiah Thomas a member of this organization.
Incidentally, we heard for years and years that the Knicks could never ever get under the salary cap and then Donnie Walsh took care of it in about two hours one Friday afternoon.
If nothing else, Mindy McCready's relationship with Roger Clemens ought to give her a whole album of country songs one of these days, right?
Wait a second: The drama about Brett Favre's next retirement is starting up already?
Doesn't it seem like last year's cliffhanger ending in Green Bay was only a couple of months ago?
One of the reasons that people out of town don't exactly love our city is when we - and that means all of us - start fitting LeBron for his Knicks home white uniform while the kid is still trying to win a championship in Cleveland.
It's probably understood by now that if you call the house during the "24" movie tonight with anything other than a Sabathia signing you're going to get the answering machine.
I liked tennis a lot better when the year-end Masters tournament used to be at the Garden, but that's just me.
Somebody has to explain to Coach Knight that once you put the headset on and work as a color man at college basketball games, as he did the other night at the Garden, that he's part of the Big Bad Devil Media now.
It's worth pointing out that when Coach Coughlin was still working in college, he beat Notre Dame in football when that was still hard to do.
One of these days Commissioner Stern needs to figure out where the Nets are going to be playing in a few years if they're not playing in Brooklyn.
Bloomberg would have given out those rebate checks if the Mets or Jets or Yankees had asked for them, right?
By the way?
Watching Bloomberg turn on the City Council this way after it practically handed him the keys to City Hall for a third term is more fun than it used to be watching mob guys turn on each other in "The Sopranos."
If Giuliani runs for governor, he better hope things go better for him upstate than they did in Florida when he ran his sorry race for President.
Because the more time he spent in Florida this year, the worse his poll numbers got.
Every time I hear people say the candidates should be just like "you and me," I remember a line from comedian Tony Powell, now a regular on the Imus show:
He wants our elected officials, starting with the President, to be a lot smarter than you and me.
If the Giants need eight yards, doesn't it seem as if Steve Smith always gets them at least nine?
The only thing that is a little worrisome about the Jets is that they have been rung up for 30-plus scores three times in 10 games.
Even in a season when only quarterbacks are supposed to have a chance at the Heisman, I still think Michael Crabtree, the receiver from Texas Tech, is the best guy out there.
Frankie Rodriguez's price seems to be dropping faster than, well, everything.
Greg Oden has already missed a year and some games, but you better pay attention to him when he is on the court, because the guy has a world of talent.
And also because he plays the center position the way it is supposed to be played.
If Mark Cuban is smarter than everybody else and if you don't think he is, just shoot him an e-mail - then how did he get into a world of trouble, Martha Stewart-like trouble, with the government?
All of a sudden Cuban's basketball team having turned into Just Another Team, and what is going to be a failed quest for the Cubs, seem like the least of his problems.
And finally today:
One Happy Birthday shout-out goes to my Mom, who is still the toughest one in the whole family.
The second is for my daughter, who turns 10 on Tuesday.
Mrs. L and I waited a long time for a girl.
But, boy, the wait for this girl sure was worth it.
Source: nydailynews.com
And because the Yankees are such a big deal around here and always will be, there is no reason to root against him, no reason to hope he does anything besides do things right, and with some style. This is good for the Yankees and good for baseball, which did not want Hank to be the one in charge.
Hal is a Steinbrenner and these are the Yankees, and so of course they're going to spend as much money as it takes to get back on top, at least to get past the Red Sox and Rays and get back in the playoffs. These are the Yankees and you know that if they can somehow make the payroll come in at less than it was last season - even if $200 million-plus puts them so far ahead of the field it's ridiculous - they will act as if they have somehow balanced the federal budget.
HAL NAMED NEW YANKEE BOSS
Or maybe act as if they're clipping coupons to get by.
But there is no rule that has ever been passed, at either Yankee Stadium or Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, that Hal Steinbrenner has to talk just to talk, the way others in his family have since what feels like the beginning of time, about C.C. Sabathia or anything else.
"We've made (Sabathia) an offer, but it's not going to be there forever," Hal said the other day.
The offer is reported to be $140 million, and that is a significant number, because it is a bit north of what the Mets paid Johan Santana, for whom the Yankees did not want to trade one year ago. It may not seem like a huge disparity, but this is a culture where athletes keep score about money that will never affect a single day of the rest of their lives, where there is this giant imaginary scoreboard only they (and their agents) care about, even at a time when the economy of this country is going to hell in a shopping cart.
It has been going on since the beginning of time, since Ted Williams told the Red Sox he wanted to be paid only a dollar more than DiMaggio. So the Yankees come in with a contract that is bigger than Santana's and Sabathia is supposed to take it because it isn't just huge money, because it is huge Yankee money, and when the Yankees money-whip somebody like this they're always supposed to get their man.
And maybe he will in the end, even though what we hear about the big guy is that he would prefer being on the West Coast and prefer being in the National League because he likes to hit. Maybe he will because the money is so huge, and because when you are the top guy out there, you are under tremendous pressure from a fading players' union to take it, because that helps the next biggest guy out there (not just in weight) and the next guy after that.
But here's the deal on this deal:
Talking tough, even for a sentence, doesn't make Sabathia come here. And talk like this ultimately means nothing. The Yankees, and the Steinbrenners, know that better than anybody, because of what happened a year ago with Alex Rodriguez, everybody's All-America.
You remember how everybody rolled on that one. Or rolled over, as the case may be. If A-Rod opted out, the way he did during Game 4 of the 2007 World Series, that was it, the Yankees were through with him, goodbye. Only before you knew it, not only was A-Rod on his way back to third base at the old Stadium and back into the cleanup spot, he was getting a whole lot more money, what could turn out to be $300 million worth of money, than the Yankees were going to offer him BEFORE he opted out.
Hal Steinbrenner doesn't have to do it the way his father did. Nobody is going to do it that way and nobody should try and it's been occasionally pathetic over the last couple of years watching as our business has tried to turn Hank into the second coming of the old man.
The fact is that the Yankees need Sabathia a lot worse than he needs them. The Yankees are never cheap. Talk is.
***
Donnie Walsh is doing so many things right, you don't want to be a tough grader on anything with this guy.
But he shouldn't have come into this season with Stephon Marbury a member of the Knicks organization, and he should not have come into this season with Isiah Thomas a member of this organization.
Incidentally, we heard for years and years that the Knicks could never ever get under the salary cap and then Donnie Walsh took care of it in about two hours one Friday afternoon.
If nothing else, Mindy McCready's relationship with Roger Clemens ought to give her a whole album of country songs one of these days, right?
Wait a second: The drama about Brett Favre's next retirement is starting up already?
Doesn't it seem like last year's cliffhanger ending in Green Bay was only a couple of months ago?
One of the reasons that people out of town don't exactly love our city is when we - and that means all of us - start fitting LeBron for his Knicks home white uniform while the kid is still trying to win a championship in Cleveland.
It's probably understood by now that if you call the house during the "24" movie tonight with anything other than a Sabathia signing you're going to get the answering machine.
I liked tennis a lot better when the year-end Masters tournament used to be at the Garden, but that's just me.
Somebody has to explain to Coach Knight that once you put the headset on and work as a color man at college basketball games, as he did the other night at the Garden, that he's part of the Big Bad Devil Media now.
It's worth pointing out that when Coach Coughlin was still working in college, he beat Notre Dame in football when that was still hard to do.
One of these days Commissioner Stern needs to figure out where the Nets are going to be playing in a few years if they're not playing in Brooklyn.
Bloomberg would have given out those rebate checks if the Mets or Jets or Yankees had asked for them, right?
By the way?
Watching Bloomberg turn on the City Council this way after it practically handed him the keys to City Hall for a third term is more fun than it used to be watching mob guys turn on each other in "The Sopranos."
If Giuliani runs for governor, he better hope things go better for him upstate than they did in Florida when he ran his sorry race for President.
Because the more time he spent in Florida this year, the worse his poll numbers got.
Every time I hear people say the candidates should be just like "you and me," I remember a line from comedian Tony Powell, now a regular on the Imus show:
He wants our elected officials, starting with the President, to be a lot smarter than you and me.
If the Giants need eight yards, doesn't it seem as if Steve Smith always gets them at least nine?
The only thing that is a little worrisome about the Jets is that they have been rung up for 30-plus scores three times in 10 games.
Even in a season when only quarterbacks are supposed to have a chance at the Heisman, I still think Michael Crabtree, the receiver from Texas Tech, is the best guy out there.
Frankie Rodriguez's price seems to be dropping faster than, well, everything.
Greg Oden has already missed a year and some games, but you better pay attention to him when he is on the court, because the guy has a world of talent.
And also because he plays the center position the way it is supposed to be played.
If Mark Cuban is smarter than everybody else and if you don't think he is, just shoot him an e-mail - then how did he get into a world of trouble, Martha Stewart-like trouble, with the government?
All of a sudden Cuban's basketball team having turned into Just Another Team, and what is going to be a failed quest for the Cubs, seem like the least of his problems.
And finally today:
One Happy Birthday shout-out goes to my Mom, who is still the toughest one in the whole family.
The second is for my daughter, who turns 10 on Tuesday.
Mrs. L and I waited a long time for a girl.
But, boy, the wait for this girl sure was worth it.
Source: nydailynews.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment