The Most Important Moves Yankees Must Make to Right the Ship After 2020 Disaster
SAN DIEGO — The New York Yankees' charter left San Diego at noon Saturday with a scheduled flight time of four-and-a-half hours. It must've felt like an eternity in the air. Alone with their thoughts, replaying their Game 5 ALDS loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, there was no escaping their harsh rebranding: The Yankees, who used to boast about being "savages," are now just another team that can't get it done in October.
So begins another offseason of hard questions and relentless second-guessing. The organization promises to do better next season, but it's getting harder to believe it. The Bombers have been ascending since 2018 with the goal of finally winning another championship—their first since 2009—with Gerrit Cole on board. Not only did they fall short, but getting eliminated in the division series represented a step backward from 2019 when they were bounced in the ALCS by the Houston Astros.
Here the Yankees are, working their way down the ladder of success. Hobbled by injuries and inconsistent play, they finished with only the majors' 10th-best record and were dominated by the Rays from beginning to end. It was bad enough to be beaten by Mike Brosseau, of all people, but the Rays rubbed it in for nearly 90 minutes afterward.
Stripped down to shorts and T-shirts, the players cranked up "New York, New York" and "Empire State of Mind" while smoking cigars, chugging beers and breakdancing on the field. Nothing did more to fuel the party than the memory of Aroldis Chapman and his stupefied expression as Brosseau circled the bases.
The Yankees, meanwhile, tried to collect themselves before video conference interviews with the players. It took nearly a half-hour for Aaron Boone to finally reach the podium. He met with his players, some of whom he said wept. Boone himself looked like he'd been crying as he described the "just awful" feeling of going home early. Again.
So what's next for the Yankees? They can start by being honest about their place among baseball's elite clubs. Until they prove otherwise, they remain a rung below championship-caliber. They're a wealthy legacy franchise with multiple big-name stars who've won nothing. Giancarlo Stanton's opening salvo Friday night was spot-on. He said, "We haven't gotten it done, and that's as plain as it can get."
There are some easy, obvious fixes on the horizon. Others will be more painful. Here's the roadmap for the elusive breakthrough.
Re-Sign DJ LeMahieu
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This is the ultimate no-brainer, as the softspoken infielder has been the Yankees' best player for two seasons.
He's one of the few hitters who combined power and high-average contact, which is the kind of profile the offense needs. The Yankees' all-or-nothing, swing-for-the-planets approach works best in conjunction with more diverse hitters. That's LeMahieu, a 32-year-old free agent, who will likely command a four-year deal in the neighborhood of $90 million to $100 million after winning the 2020 batting title with a .364 average.
The only question about a long-term commitment to LeMahieu is where to play him. He's a fine second baseman, but some talent evaluators believe the Yankees need to move Gleyber Torres over from shortstop and upgrade with someone quicker and more athletic.
LeMahieu could slide over to first base, but the position already belongs to home run champion Luke Voit. And Voit can't become the DH because that slot is filled by Giancarlo Stanton for the next seven years (club option on an eighth).
Extend Aaron Boone's Contract
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A percentage of the fanbase has turned against Aaron Boone, having decided he's too data-driven—or else too tightly controlled the Yankees' analytics department. Part two of the indictment is that Boone lacks the fire of, say, Joe Girardi, whose legacy grows the longer he's gone.
It's true that Boone has taken the Yankees no further than his predecessor, but he'll get a pass from general manager Brian Cashman for navigating through a blizzard of injuries this season and otherwise maintaining good relationships with his players. In that sense, Boone has outperformed Girardi and deserves to have the option on his contract picked up, plus one more season.
It shouldn't be forgotten that Boone won 100-plus games in each of his first two seasons, a record for a rookie manager. That should count for something.
Still, Boone has to work on applying pressure to the Yankees during their long stretches of lethargic play. He seemed reluctant to draw on the equity he'd built in the clubhouse. Losing didn't seem to gnaw at him—at least not during the regular season. That lack of urgency was infectious during the Yankees' late-season collapse that cost them the AL East title.
Who knows, maybe the trauma of the ALDS will change Boone's approach. Maybe he'll realize this Yankees core can't last forever, nor can his managerial career, without a ring.
Move on from Free Agents Gary Sanchez, J.A. Happ, James Paxton
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The Yankees tipped their hand with catcher Gary Sanchez by demoting him during the ALDS. He wasn't in the starting lineup in the biggest game of the year Friday—enough said. The organization waited patiently for him to emerge from his long, mysterious slump, but the goodwill isn't limitless.
Sanchez was among the worst everyday hitters in the majors (69 OPS+), and the Yankees hope to find a long-term replacement in their recent draft picks; they've selected three catchers between the first and second rounds over the last three years.
Of course, trading Sanchez is no simple task considering his value is at an all-time low. It's possible he'll be back in spring training in February as the official backup to Kyle Higashioka. Non-tendering Sanchez is also a possibility.
Losing James Paxton in August was a blow the Yankees never fully recovered from. The Game 2 fiasco against the Rays—starting rookie Deivi Garcia and then replacing him with J.A. Happ after one inning—was the strange workaround for Paxton's absence. The Yankees simply didn't have a trustworthy No. 3 starter.
As much as a healthy Paxton would've helped, though, the reality is he made only five starts this season and was still nursing a strained left flexor tendon at season's end. That injury is often a precursor to Tommy John surgery, so it's highly unlikely the Yankees will commit to the left-hander as he enters free agency.
Happ, another free agent, is headed out the door, having gone public with his displeasure at the way he was used in Game 2. He told Aaron Boone he preferred to start and took his irritation to the mound. The Rays scored four runs in the next 2.2 innings, erasing the momentum from Gerrit Cole's Game 1 triumph over Blake Snell.
Sign Free Agent Trevor Bauer
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This will be Brian Cashman's biggest ask of the offseason: convincing owner Hal Steinbrenner of the need for yet another expensive pitcher. Gerrit Cole was supposed to be the final add-on, but Cashman can argue that Trevor Bauer, who won the NL's ERA title (1.73), would be a big upgrade over both James Paxton and J.A. Happ. He'd also be a hedge in case Masahiro Tanaka's free agency takes him elsewhere.
Even if the Japanese right-hander re-signs with the Yankees, he looks more like a back-end starter. That creates a need for another No. 2. Maybe it's Luis Severino, who'll be back in 2021 after Tommy John surgery. And don't forget Domingo German, who will be reinstated after missing the playoffs in 2019 and 2020 following a domestic violence-related suspension.
But Bauer would be the perfect fit: cocky and talented, oblivious to big-market controversy. The fact that he and Cole may dislike each other from their college days at UCLA could even be a plus. Imagine the rivalry. Imagine someone who's good enough to actually make Cole better. It's something for Cashman to consider, lest the Yankees continue on the long, flat road to nowhere.
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