TL;DR
- The Los Angeles Dodgers are described as the New York Yankees of the 1990s and early 2000s.
- Dodgers are signing premier players regardless of shocking cost, similar to past Yankees spending sprees.
- The Yankees' past successful spending sprees, like after the 2013 season, are contrasted with recent failures.
- Brian Cashman needs to adapt his approach to acquire championship-level players in the modern game.
The New York Yankees’ fanbase should feel sickened about how The New York Post’s Matt Ehalt described the Los Angeles Dodgers: they’re what the Pinstripes used to be, back in the good old days.
As Ehalt writes, the Dodgers, who were largely irrelevant in the 1990s, are what the Yankees were during that golden era, which bled into the 2000s and peaked in the 2003/2004 offseason when the team added third baseman Alex Rodriguez, outfielder Gary Sheffield, starters Kevin Brown and Javier Vasquez, and closer/setup man Tom Gordon, among many others, in one of the greatest spending sprees ever seen in professional sports at the time. Several of those were acquired on the trade market, which the Yanks also used to dominate.
Of course, Andrew Friedman, not Brian Cashman, is the trade ace these days.
Ehalt's remark came as he reviewed a meeting involving LAD star Yoshinobu Yamamoto and free agent infielder Munetaka Murakami, who could also be a Dodgers acquisition this offseason. New York is while not a primary contender for Murakami, there's expected interest in outfielder/corner infielder Kazuma Okamoto..
“Fresh off a second straight World Series and two consecutive offseasons in which they signed the biggest Japanese free agent, star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto grabbed dinner with top Japanese free agent Munetaka Murakami, as captured in a photo by Kenshiro Saito,” Ehalt wrote.
“Now, of course, this dinner may be nothing more than just two friends catching up.
“However, the Dodgers have become the Yankees of the 1990s and early 2000s in free agency, signing premier player after premier player no matter the shocking cost.”
The Yankees' general manager, Brian Cashman, must alter the prevailing story surrounding the team.
Not too long ago, Cashman mirrored the 1990s' spending approach. After the 2013 season, the Yankees acquired outfielder Carlos Beltran, catcher Brian McCann, outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, and international starting pitchers Masahiro Tanaka and Hiroki Kuroda in a historic free agent spree. However, these moves proved unsuccessful. The Yankees didn't regain prominence until the majority of these players had departed.
It’s about getting these spending sprees right. Not only do the Dodgers get it right, but they reinvest in more talent after winning it all. Then they win it all again.
Cashman knows how to do this. He just needs to buff his chest out and figure out how to adapt to what makes for championship-level players in the modern game.