Buyers of Sellers? Dynasty Crumbling...

                                             Buyers or Sellers? Dynasty Crumbling....

     As I sit here on this mid-July night, aimlessly watching the first place Baltimore Orioles, hardly a juggernaut, play the 46-46 New York Yankees in the second game of a four game series in the Bronx. The Yankees are a team in flux, and tonight, they have Nathan Eovaldi, himself a hard-throwing erratic enigma, pitching thereby epitomizing their stature. For now, the game is scoreless in the second inning, but the truth is that it is only a matter of time before the Yanks do nothing or self-destruct.

     The team sits in fourth place, 7.5 games behind Baltimore and a full 5 games behind third place Toronto. As to the Wild Card position in the American League, they are 6 games behind the Boston Red Sox and 5 behind the Blue Jays, but including those two squads, they have 6 opponents to overcome. And they are 12-19 against the AL East teams.

     There are some very bright spots. Shortstop Didi Gregorius and outfielder and designated hitter Carlos Beltran are hitting nearly .300. Beltran is an All-Star this year and a potential Hall of Fame player based upon a superb career as a switch hitter with some pop in his bat. Beltran is 39 years old and in the final year of his contract; he has slowed down considerably and is regularly replaced for defense in late innings.

     Four pitchers excel. Starter Masahiro Tanaka has justified his large contract. Then there are the 3 relievers who blow away batters--Dellin Betances, a young fireballer with an awesome curve who comes into the game usually in the 7th inning; Andrew Miller, a hard throwing lefthander with a wicked slider covers the 8th inning; and  Aroldis Chapman, capable of throwing his heater upwards of 105 m.p.h., closes the games for the Yankees. This trio normally pitches lights out.

    But that is it for this team. Aged Alex Rodriguez cannot play the field and his .218 average is unacceptable--the only solace is to watch his quest for 700 or more home runs. Sure fielding and former power hitting Mark Teixeira is beset with injuries and his average is even lower--.181. Chase Headley is a pedestrian switch hitting third baseman. Starlin Castro as second base is young and has promise. Speedy Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury have continued to underperform in the outfield and at bat. Brian McCann does hit home runs and frame pitches, but cannot throw out runners attempting to steal; his backup Austin Romine can hit some and catch, but he is a backup. There is little offense. More at home than on the road.

     The remainder of the starting pitching is inconsistent. Ivan Nova is the best of the lot, and he was originally slotted for the bullpen. Highly paid C. C. Sabathia is older and is past his prime; his consistently good days are in his rear view mirror. Michael Pineda has youth and promise, but it comes fleetingly and he is prone to giving up home runs. The remainder of the bullpen largely consists of fill ins going and coming from Triple A.

     So what should management do with this team as the trade deadline looms. There is a lot of interest from other teams for Betances, Miller, Chapman and Beltran.  However, can this team contend? While they have lost a series to Boston to start the second half of the season, they have this series and an interleague series with the top-rated team in MLB, the San Francisco Giants, this coming weekend, before embarking on a road trip to Houston to play the young and hungry Astros then moving onto St. Petersburg, FL to play the Rays who have one of the worst records in baseball. Including tonight, the Yankees have 12 games left to show that they are capable of making a move to contend in some fashion.

      Minor league help is minimal. Catching prospect Gary Sanchez is not quite ready and powerful outfielder Aaron Judge is currently out with a knee injury. First baseman Greg Bird, who filled in admirably for Teixeira last season, is out for the season after labrum surgery. Young pitcher Luis Severino was demoted early this season and appears not to be recalled soon.

     What if the Yankee pitching stabilizes and hitters start to come alive? Are they realistically a contender? Should they trade to improve their chances to win now?

     Most people say they aren't that good and this will not eventuate. Yet high management and ownership is unwilling yet to concede this might happen.

     If that is the case, they should carefully deconstruct this team. If there is interest for much of the roster, they should consider trades that will embellish the team for next season and years beyond--in essence, become much younger. Do not give away the store, but responsibly replenish the roster in key areas of pitching and the outfield. Buy out A-Rod's contract if possible; he serves little use for the team if he cannot be traded to someone who sees value in him. If tossing in the towel means attendance suffers, then this must be undertaken if the Yankees are to be back in the midst of the fight for the playoffs starting with next season.

     Then there is the question of the baseball leadership. I think that manager Joe Girardi over manages with his top pitchers, but that is due to a lack of hitting and pitching which dies not make more than 5 innings too many times. He should be retained. My wife thinks that pitching coach Larry Rothschild might need to go--I don't know if he is to be entirely blamed for the pitching problems. General Manager Brian Cashman has been in New York for 18 years--is it time to blame him for long-term contracts that extended too far and a barren minor league system? Maybe. What he does around the trade deadline might seal his fate.

     One thing for sure--the end of July is going to be the most exciting part of a rather desultory season thus far. For a proud franchise, this is humbling.

   


   

   

Is It Kevin Durant's Fault?

                                                        Is It Kevin Durant's Fault?

     Let's start with I am biased here. I wanted the Golden State Warriors to win the 2015-16 NBA Championship. I wanted validation for 73 wins. I like Steph Curry. I like Klay Thompson. I like Draymond Green. I like Anthony Iguodala. I even like Andrew Bogut and Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa. I rooted for Mo Speights and Harrison Barnes. I pulled for Steve Kerr and his travails to returning as Head Coach. So Cleveland and its fans have that long-sought banner. More power to LeBron James. Kyrie Irving was the difference maker. Let J.R. Smith keep his shirt on.

     But it is a new season already, notwithstanding that the Rio Olympics are on the horizon. Free agency has struck in its immaculate earnesty. Trades have abounded. The New York Knicks, my erstwhile favorite team with just 2 championships to show for all its tenure in the NBA, went out and made themselves better. Even the Brooklyn Nets, the ancestor of the New Jersey Nets, went into the market and swooped out with Jeremy Lin whose Knicks success (Linsanity!) still makes him a cult hero in these environs.

     No, the name of the game is to get better. To build upon success. To put yourself in a posture to contend and even win a championship (or two). This might even happen someday to the Philadelphia 76'ers, the masters of woefulness in recent memory with such dismal records despite having solid draft positions.

     The salary cap numbers are out of sight. $94 million. That's absurd. Very good players like the aforementioned Harrison Barnes receive ungodly sums of money for multiple years to sign with a new team--in this case it is the Houston Rockets who have unlocked their vault. Certain Hall of Fame players like Dewayne Wade are playing the free agent market to secure 2 or 3 more years beyond their prime either from unrealistic suitors like the Denver Nuggets or to leverage and pressure the Miami Heat, his only team, to capitulate and give him loads of cash for loyalty. Tell me, did that work out for A-Rod and the New York Yankees?

     All of a sudden, loyalty to a fan base matters more than ever. This is largely due to LBJ's return to Cleveland to bring home the bacon. Let me repeat myself--his RETURN home to Cleveland. Remember how vilified he was when he went South to join Wade and Chris Bosh in South Florida? No matter how successful he was there?

     So here comes Kevin Durant, one of the 5 best players in the current NBA. A lock as a Hall of Famer. He is a free agent. The betting was that he'd sign again with Oklahoma City for 1 year @ a measly $20 million to enhance his chances next summer for a more lucrative free agency payday.

     In a ludicrous recruitment tour akin to the stupor that free agency is itself, he visits the Los Angeles Clippers. Then he meets with the Golden State Warriors in the Hamptons on Long Island, far removed from his hometown of Washington, D.C. or the rather hot and dry Sooner State, who send their management, coaches, and Durant's good friend, Steph Curry, the reigning M.V.P. And he is swept of his feet by their pitch and their offer.    

     Kevin Durant decides to become a Golden State Warrior. The money is good. But the chance to play with the team-friendliest ball-moving team in the NBA which came within about 1 minute of winning the NBA Championship is an allure which no other team can offer. He does not have to worry over 4th quarter meltdowns by point guard Russell Westbrook, a known ball hog and glory seeker who is great but definitely is not K.D.

     What does Durant not have? An NBA Championship ring. What does this group of Warriors have--a ring and the opportunity, if healthy, to legitimately contend for years to come. GSW has become a sort of NBA Dream Team with 4 players the likes of Durant, Curry, Thompson and Green. Iguodala can go back to being a 6th man coming off the bench. They become the presumptive favorites for the upcoming season. Why wouldn't Durant want to thrive in this kind of environment? He does not have to be the one to carry the team night in and night out. As near as the Thunder had come to the NBA Finals this year and with their 1 prior appearance in the Finals, what would their chances have been this year had he stayed put?

     Fans and writers are up in arms about Durant abandoning OKC. How much does loyalty count these days in any arena--sports or business? Didn't Oklahoma City swoop in and take away the Seattle Super Sonics from the devoted fans of the Pacific Northwest? This is business and Durant was taking care of himself. You didn't see him remotely considering going home to play for the Washington Wizards...

     Free agency happens every year. Fans are jolted. The playing fields of all sports are leveled in different ways and shapes. There isn't this hue and cry anyway when Apple loses an innovative computer scientist to Google, is there? Or when a lawyer gets a better chance for partnership through a headhunter?

     Get over it, Thunder fans. Get ready for some less than stellar teams. Boo K.D. as you wish whenever he plays in Chesapeake Energy Arena. Recognize this, OKC and the rest of the NBA, it isn't Kevin Durant's fault. It is the monster that has been created with the ability to go from team to team while paying astronomical sums of money to--basketball players.  Maybe we can blame this all on LeBron anyway...