The New York Yankees finished the season 82-80, good for a fourth-place finish in the American League East. The were problems scattered across the roster, from injuries in the lineup to a wildly unreliable pitching staff.
New York entered the 2023 season with the second-highest payroll in baseball. One has to imagine ownership is unsatisfied with that outcome. But, rather than promising significant changes, Hal Steinbrenner and the Yankees' brass have promised changes in philosophy and updates to the clubhouse, with little more than minor personnel changes on the horizon.
Of course, the Yankees will always be in the running for the MLB's true heavy-hitters. New York has the power of prestige and history on their side. Players want to don the pinstripes. Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and other high-profile free agents have been tied to the Yankees at various points.
That said, there is a decent chance such "ties" are based more on the wishful thinking of the fanbase than on actual free agent workings. Recent comments from Steinbrenner and Cashman sent the fanbase into a frenzy — a frenzy that was backed up in big, bold letters in the New York Post.
New York Post takes savage shot at Yankees' management after disastrous offseason comments
The Yankees were absolutely dreadful on the offensive end last season. Aaron Boone's lineup choices were a constant source of angst and the pitching staff floundered at critical points in the season.
Still, the worst criticsm of the Yankees was the idea that the team is too "analytically-driven." Rather than smashing this softball rebuttal off a tee, however, Brian Cashman somehow came out looking worse with his response, citing the Yankees' small analytics department as an alleged positive. He also said the Yankees don't need to speed $300 million to win and should be able to find success with a younger group.
Of course, he's half-right on the last point. There are young, inexpensive teams that can win games. Those teams generally have stronger farm systems than the Yankees, though, and also don't have ownership groups that are actually willing to spend $300 million. There's a reason we see the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles flame out in the postseason. Cheap owners can only get you so far.
The New York Post generally manifests the tenor of the New York fanbase in print. There isn't a better indicator of how Yankee fans feel than a strongly-worded column in the Post. The Yankees should heed the not-so-secret advice from that cover — if it's broke, do fix it.
Few teams face higher expectations season-to-season than the Yankees. That's the consequence of being, well, the New York freakin' Yankees. If Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone continue to fail the fanbase, the campaigns for their firing will only get louder.