Are the Yankees Headed for a 3rd Straight Year Without a Playoff Appearance?
December 18, 2014 · Jason Catania · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
For almost two decades, the New York Yankees making the playoffs was more or less a given. That’s a reputation and an expectation that materializes when, from 1995 through 2012, a team falls short only one time (in 2008).
But in going 84-78 last season—one game worse than their mark in 2013, by the way—the Yankees missed out on October for (gasp!) the second year in a row for the first time since 1992-93.
That stretch, from 1991-93, also marks the last time this franchise went three straight seasons sans the playoffs, which came amid a rough run of 12 consecutive postseason-less campaigns that spanned 1982-93.
The situation in the Bronx right now doesn’t appear to be quite that dire, but given all that’s going on—both inside and outside the organization—it’s reasonable to ask: Are the Yankees headed for a third straight year without a playoff appearance?
Let’s start with inside the organization first.
General manager Brian Cashman has been active, but he hasn’t made any major signings so far, at least nothing quite like last winter when he spent about half a billion and somehow turned an 85-win team into an 84-win club.
Here’s a quick rundown of the additions and subtractions on the ledger to this point, along with each player’s projected wins above replacement (WAR), according to Steamer:
Of course, it’s not as easy as tallying those numbers up and saying the Yankees will be about two wins better in 2015 based on a projection system. And even if it were just that simple, New York merely would be going from 84 wins to 86 or so—likely not good enough to get back to October.
Despite that, Cashman, to his credit, hasn’t made any real missteps this offseason, even if some, like John Harper of the New York Daily News, seem to be clamoring for the big-name pickup (read: Max Scherzer).
But Cashman‘s task continues to get tougher as the once-star players to which he handed out massive money years ago—like Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira—continue to get older, worse and more injury-prone.
The roster is littered with those onerous, immovable contracts attached to players who are paid as if they’re MVP candidates but who now perform like should-be-replaced parts. That advancing age and those impactful injury issues aren’t going away anytime soon.
All of which brings us to the part where we expand the view to look outside the Yankees organization. In case you haven’t noticed, the American League has added a ton of talent overall since the World Series concluded.
“Almost everyone…in the American League has apparently made the same decision [to go for it],” writes Dave Cameron for FanGraphs. “No one is rebuilding anymore, especially not in the American League.”
And the AL East has been a big part of that, what with the rival Boston Red Sox bringing aboard Hanley Ramirez, Pablo Sandoval, Rick Porcello, Wade Miley and Justin Masterson, and the Toronto Blue Jays adding Josh Donaldson and Russell Martin.
The Baltimore Orioles have lost Nelson Cruz, Nick Markakis and Andrew Miller and haven’t had much coming in (unless you’re, like, really high on reliever Wesley Wright), but they also won the division with 96 wins—that’s 12 more than the Yankees managed, if you’re counting along at home.
And that’s just the East. There’s been all sorts of action in the Central and West, too, with the Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners and, especially, Chicago White Sox getting better, either organically and developmentally or by additions via trade or free agency—or both.
While all that is going on outside of New York, there won’t be any Derek Jeter or Mariano Rivera farewell tour to serve as a well-timed nostalgic distraction, a reminder of those halcyon dynasty days. But let’s not act as if there’s no talent on the Yankees—or no hope for an end to what must feel like an absolute postseason drought to their fans.
Barring some serious health-related problems, which certainly could occur, the Yankees shouldn’t be a bad team in 2015. There’s enough on the roster to make a playoff push if a few things break (or in this case, don’t break) just right.
Chances are, the Yankees will matter in the wild-card race into September, just as they have in both 2013 and 2014. Remember: Because of the financial ability to take on payroll relatively easily, Cashman could add a piece or three around midsummer to bolster the roster and any postseason drive.
At the moment, however, even if you’re squinting through pinstripe-colored lenses, it’s hard to look at the Yankees and definitively see one of the two best teams in the AL East and one of the top five in the Junior Circuit overall.
That’s what it takes to get back to October. And the Yankees probably aren’t there yet.
Statistics are accurate through the 2014 season and courtesy of MLB.com, Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted.
To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11.
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