Fucking Yankees

The BBQ Pit
61

Well, that’s because I was originally intending to be addressing the situation about payroll disparity.

In the case of the Dodgers (high payroll), it’s a matter of idiocy in the front office, with a few injuries adding to the problem. Kevin Malone is/was/always will be a fucking moron who should never be allowed near another baseball team so long as he lives. Good lord, how much did they spend on Dreifort? Don’t get me started.

The Red Sox’ situation is a combo of injuries and bad management decisions. I’m not as sure of that second one, though, because of the situation that I outlined earlier. If they are healthy next season, then we shall see how they do.

Those are the two teams that have about the same as the Yankees. The next lowest are $16 million and $18 million below the Yanks. The Mets being the ones that are 16 million behind. I don’t feel qualified to comment on them because I don’t really follow the National League too much except for the Dodgers (semi-hometown team and all).

Cleveland was the next one down in the American League after the Sox. I think they did pretty well against the machine that was the Mariners. Give them the 18 million difference between the Yanks and the Tribe to get another top quality starter and maybe they beat Seattle.

Atlanta had about the same payroll as Cleveland, but I didn’t really pay attention to their postseason so I couldn’t tell you off the top of my head.

And again, the amount a team is able to spend on scouting, coaching, front office help, the farm system, etc. doesn’t get factored into payroll but are ways that a team with more money could dominate others. Perhaps teams like the Sox or Los Angeles spend a larger portion of their money on payroll and don’t devote as much as the Yankees are able to devote to these extremely important things. That’s a hypothetical, of course, and since I don’t have access to their books I can’t tell you. I doubt that’s the case with the Dodgers but it might very well be with the Sox since I don’t think their revenue stream is as high as the Yankees’.

62

NEUROTIK, your example is a little over-simplistic, because what you have is not one team with $100K versus one team with $20, but three teams with $100K, three with $90K, three with $80K, etc. So the question isn’t just why one team with $100K beat the $20s, but also why it beat the $90s and the other $100s. Again, if it was money alone then the Yankess wouldn’t be playing the Diamondbacks, they’d be playing the Red Sox.

You yourself say that money doesn’t guarantee winning. Shoot, the Yanks are barely able to beat the Diamondbacks at this point, and their winning the whole series can hardly be considered a sure thing, bought and paid for. So on the one hand you admit that money can’t guarantee wins and that other things go into a winning team (like good decision-making, management, and luck avoiding injuries) and in the same breath you allege the Yankees “bought” the series. Well, which is it? Because if it’s just money then they ought be playing someone else, and their eventual victory should be a sure-thing. And if it’s not just money then it’s not fair to say they’ve bought their way in.

You can’t have it both ways.

63

So Neurotik, what your saying is that the Yankees bought themselves into the World Series by having good management and staying healthy.

The Red Sox and the Dodgers don’t count because they didn’t win, didn’t have good management and didn’t stay healthy.

The A’s and Houston don’t count because they had good management and stayed healthy.
So having deep pockets is advantageous to only the Yankees, hence them “buying” themselves into the series. Because playing the games mean nothing, right? I mean, why don’t we just calculate which team is spending the most money and award the pennants and rings in April?

64

Or what Jodi said.

Damned slow typing fingers.

65

Well, no, they’d be playing the Dodgers.

But my point is that money doesn’t guarantee. But money coupled with good management is. Teams with the same level of management (A’s, etc.) can’t compete with the money that the Yankees are throwing around. So, in the sense, that we are comparing teams with more or less equally good management (teams in postseason) the Yankees have an advantage. Which is why they end up winning in the end.

And I seriously doubt that this season will be any exception.

The A’s and Houston don’t count because they had good management and stayed healthy.
So having deep pockets is advantageous to only the Yankees, hence them “buying” themselves into the series. Because playing the games mean nothing, right? I mean, why don’t we just calculate which team is spending the most money and award the pennants and rings in April?
[/quote]

Um, what? The A’s don’t count because they don’t have the money. They have the good management and stayed healthy, just not the money. Second lowest payroll, remember?

No, having deep pockets is advantageous to everyone who has them. Some people just don’t make good use of it. The D-backs have pretty deep pockets and so got two of the best pitchers in baseball. That’s why they are in the World Series. Cut some cash from them and suddenly they don’t have the pitchers and they’re out.

Cut some cash from the Braves, cost them their pitching and suddenly maybe the Phillies win out.

This can go on.

However, a team with good management with NO money is not going to beat the team with good management and the MOST money very frequently, if ever. And it will certainly not do it consistently.

I give the Yankees full credit for their farm system and their management. But that has something to do with money, as well.

Do the Yankees make the postseason and win some World Series if they don’t have as high a payroll. Undoubtedly they do, they just don’t win nearly as often. That’s the point.

66

Well, with all due respect, that’s a different point than “they bought their way into the series.”

To me, it’s like you’re talking to a person who had money enough to go to a great school BUT who ALSO worked hard for good grades, took advantage of innate management skills, and got lucky in promotion. And you say to that person “you bought your career.”
Do you have money to dress nicely, be raised with manners, have a good job, and generally make yourself attractive to women? You must have bought your wife.

Do you have money to belong to certain clubs, pursue certain hobbies, go to certain events, and travel in certain circles? You must have bought your friends.

If money is only one ingredient, then “you bought it” is inaccurate.

67

So what caused you to post that? Stupidity, racism, or insensitivity?

68

Were you watching the same series I was? The A’s lost game 3 by one run. You’re selling them short by saying they can’t compete with the Yankees. They competed very very well.

69

Geez, Monty, can’t you tell? It was a delightfully witty pun on that silly squinty fellow’s name. :rolleyes:

70

DAMN…I thought this was going to be a thread bashing americans of northern origin…My Bad.

71

Oh, Monty. Silly goose. No, not racism. I’m asian, too. Not insensitivity. Probably stupidity. I’ll be damned if I could spell his name from memory, and whenever those crappy Fox announcers say his name, it sounds like they’re saying Yum-Yum.

72

Hmmm … in light of this, my previous post looks pretty stupid. Sorry for jumping to conclusions. :embarrassed blush:

73

Yes, until they choked utterly :frowning:

They didn’t lose to the Yankees because they didn’t spend enough money, the lost because they’re still a young team and, apparently, caved under the pressure.

74

FWIW, at least it looks as if there will be a game 7.
[sub]I have probably just doomed us to a 16 run Yankees ninth by posting this before the game is finished…[/sub]

75

It looks like the Yankees gave up for the day; they replaced 3 players on the 5th to save them for tomorrow.

[sub]Of course the 9th is coming…[/sub]

76

**Final, Game 6: D’Backs 15, Yankees 2 **

[sub]whew! <-- Just happy that I didn’t jinx anything by my previous post[/sub]

77

My prediction for tomorrow: D’backs 8, Yanks 3 …from a Mariners fan.

78

The Yanks were just letting the Diamondbacks get all that hitting out of their systems (and lulling them into a false sense of security).

My prediction for tonight: Yankees 1, Diamondbacks 0, in 21 innings, on a home run by Luis Sojo.

79

“Best team in Baseball?”

C’mon Curt!

80

If it wasn’t for the 1994 strike and baseball’s economics, the Montreal Expos would have won at least one World Series. You could make quite an all-star team of former Expos.

Also, rooting for the Yankees because of the terrorist attacks is stupid because there is practically no connection between New York City and the players. Only Bernie Williams even lives in New York State, and I’m sure he also has a place in Florida or something for tax reasons (http://espn.go.com/page2/s/caple/011026.html).

And Fox–what the HELL does “Tonight, Tonight” have to do with baseball?