Yankees Taking Heat For Offseason Spending Amid Economic Crisis
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Expensive Yankees Free Agent Signings Defy
Selig's Recommendation Of Tighter Spending |
The Yankees Friday agreed to a five-year, $82.5M contract with P A.J. Burnett, and on the heels of the seven-year, $161M contract given last week to P CC Sabathia, the signing "will leave the rest of the game's blood vessels bursting in anger," according to Scott Miller of CBSSPORTS.com. An MLB exec said Commissioner Bud Selig at the Owners Meetings in November noted teams "need to tighten their belts because of the economy." But the exec said, "The Yankees are continuing to do things none of the rest of us can do. We're all supposed to be careful in this economy, while they can do whatever they want? It's a joke" (CBSSPORTS.com, 12/12). SPORTINGNEWS.com's Ryan Fagan wrote of the Yankees' offseason acquisitions thus far, "The muscles are flexing and the pinstripes are rippling. Once again thumbing their nose at the economic troubles other owners and general managers have spent the offseason talking about" (SPORTINGNEWS.com, 12/12).
KNOWING WHEN TO SAY WHEN: In N.Y., Bill Gallo wrote, "You have to wonder where and when a star athlete's cup will be full. How much is too much? Just how long before the sports bubble bursts? And what a time for these uncontrolled sums of dollars to be doled out. There are those words like recession and unemployment popping up daily in our newspapers and on our TV sets. In this setting, a man gets $161[M] to pitch for the Yankees and if he held out for more, he probably could've gotten it" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 12/14). In Birmingham, Jeff Sentell wrote the Yankees' deals are "tough to read after headlines about auto titans on their last tread." Sports have "always been an oasis from tough times, but it's not right to see salaries soar while fans cut back this Christmas" (BIRMINGHAM NEWS, 12/13).
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Yankees' Record-Setting Contract To
Sabathia Garners Mixed Reaction From Media |
USING THEIR RESOURCES: SI.com's Tom Verducci wrote the Yankees are a "global operation that must run at peak capacity, which means, at a minimum, four million paying customers per year, strong ratings on their regional sports network and a postseason berth." The Yankees' greatest asset is "not player development, but financial resources," and the team "should be expected to use that asset" (SI.com, 12/12). In Dayton, Mark Gokavi wrote, "Against the backdrop of a flailing economy, it's easy to bash the New York Yankees for spending nearly a quarter of a billion dollars for two pitchers. ... But they wouldn't do it unless they figured fans will pony up cash at the ballpark to make it work" (DAYTON DAILY NEWS, 12/14). In N.Y., Joel Sherman wrote, "What is more detrimental to baseball, that the Yankees gave a pitching-record contract to [Sabathia] and likely will have a lower payroll in 2009 than 2008, or that the Padres are working feverishly to trade [P Jake Peavy] as yet another way to plummet their way to a $40[M] payroll and irrelevance?" Sherman: "Why when the Yanks give Sabathia a seven-year, $161[M] contract is it open season on the overdogs? That contract is a natural progression of the market. If the Angels gave it to Sabathia, would there be any discussion about it?" (N.Y. POST, 12/14). ESPN’s John Saunders: “I have to believe that (the Yankees) are going to end up in front of Congress looking for a bailout” ("The Sports Reporters,” ESPN, 12/14).
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