After another postseason disappointment, there is no team that makes more effort to fix what went wrong faster than the New York Yankees. They have the cash to do it and every offseason they throw a lot of money around in an attempt to right the ship instantly.
This offseason has not been one that would be considered by MLB betting pundits as a success. They did not get the big fish they wanted and had to make some tough decisions on keeping two of their greatest players ever.
Cliff Lee, the All-Star pitcher, was the guy they wanted but could not get in the end. Lee would of made them one of the instant World Series favourites.
It wasn’t just Lee passing on the Yankees that hurt the most. It was his decision to go to another East Coast team, the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies, who are also trying to get back to the World Series, have taken the Yankees’ blueprint for success and done it even better as of late. They keep coming up with good minor league prospects while spending money like crazy. Clearly they learned from the best and now it is paying off.
The Yankee pitching staff will roll out Rafael Soriano and Pedro Feliciano that will help a bullpen that could be New York's strength if David Robertson, Boone Logan and Joba Chamberlain find consistency. With so many question marks hanging on the Yankees’ starting rotation past CC Sabathia, bullpen depth could be what carries them through the season.
In the end, nearly two-thirds of the Yankees’ free agent spending went to retaining Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera.
Baseball betting pundits note how New York's 2011 lineup will look very similar to last season as the only change will be new catcher Russell Martin. The Yankees spent $4 million on Russell and hopes he can return to his 2007 stats and not what he has put up lately. Top prospect Jesus Montero will add some much needed youth into the lineup giving the Yankees another potent bat.
In an offseason of what many consider a disappointment, The Yankees will still be one of the stronger teams in the American League. The question comes down to, did they improve enough? The Boston Red Sox should be the prohibitive favourite after adding Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez to their already talented squad.
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