Yes. Yes it is. But it hasn't worked since other teams started doing the same and a REAL budget penalty began.
There is no real budget penalty for a team like the Yankees. A slight hindrance maybe. The Yankees only real problem is the Astros. If the Astros were still in the NL, the view of the current regime of the Yankees would likely be very different.
If they paid all of those guys what would it bump their payroll up to? Like $350MM? $400? That would be insane. I almost wish they would do that so that they end up losing again and then have to endure the penalties.
The closest I would have come to doing that was the Bills comeback to knock the Oilers out of the Super bowl. If I hadn't been at work my tv might have had objects flying into it.
The weird fascinations that Correa desires to be in NYC and that is inevitable is happening here again… and now people are lumping JV in there as well for whatever reason. Major inferiority complex vibes in here. The Yankees do have actual blue-chip pieces in place at SS and plenty invested in pitching for the future. Maybe they’re used as leverage by Boras, but its been awhile since any team just flat-out went out and tried to “buy” a championship… it doesn’t guarantee anything. The Yankees can win 90 games next year as is. They can and should make the playoffs. That’s really the only goal.
As an Astros fan, I have a point of genuine empathy to share with Yankees fans: the situation with Judge is practically identical to that of Bagwell and Biggio back in the Killer Bs days. Both had legitimate Hall of Fame careers with all the regular season stats you want but come playoffs time kept running into a death row of HoF pitching aces of the Braves (Smoltz, Maddox, etc). So I know how it feels. The difference is Astros fans love our guys (Biggio attends every Astros home game) and Yankees boo Judge when he doesn't deliver (even though he carried the team in the season).
Altuve's dismal postseason should remind us why it was so unfair to judge Biggio & Bagwell for postseason struggles. It freaking happens in limited PAs, especially when most of who you face is the best of the best. Now with an even more expanded postseason, players get more chances, and on great teams they play way more games and their playoff numbers have time to normalize.
I think Correa values things the Yankees can offer (Money and History), but I don't think he'd be remembered the way he wants to be if he was a Yankee as they've had so many great players. I think personality wise he also fits better in LA if he went to a big market. It is hard to imagine Verlander leaving for anything other than Detroit. Because his wife's career takes her to NYC a lot, it might be a good fit, just seems hard to imagine given the mutual interest in him staying here.
If Correa is trying to have the legacy aspect after his career, I don't see how Dodgers or Yankees help him get there. Both franchises and fanbases are the most vocal and largest continually pushing the trash can scandal, and they would be torn having him on their team. He would have to be the main face of multiple titles in either place to push that to the back of their minds. He would be better off going to a city/team that has history, hasn't had much success recently, but is showing promise. Then even having great regular seasons and say 1 great postseason run with a title will get him the legacy that he wants.
If Correa opts out, I could see the SF Giants making a run at him. We don't care about that trash can BS.
It's really hard for me to imagine Verlander leaving Houston, especially for the Yankees. We would have to low ball the hell out of him.
