My How Things Have Changed

Today's the day of the 2015 MLB Draft. In previous years this day wouldn't hold much meaning for me, as I didn't concern myself much with prospects. I was only concerned with what a player could do to help the Yankees win now. What they might do in three years meant nothing to me.

My how things have changed

I'm not sure when it hit me, but some time after last season I realized that the Yankees of 1995 through 2014 were gone, and we were entering a new era. While I would certainly be rooting for the Yankees to win, I understood that their chances of doing so in 2015 were slim. They are starting to build something different. By the way, that doesn't mean they are trying to put together another Core Four/Five.

I've heard plenty of fans talking about the next Derek Jeter... the next Jorge Posada... the next Andy Pettitte... the next Mariano Rivera... the next Bernie Williams, etc. Not that anybody expects somebody to be as great as Jeter or Rivera, but those fans are looking for another set of players to come up through the Yankees minor league system and lead the team to another dynasty.

Aaron Judge, Luis Severino, Rob Refsnyder, Jacob Lindgren, and other young guys may become very good MLB players. Those guys could help future Yankees teams win the World Series. But they are not the next Cour Four. Along with those four guys the Yankees are in the midst of building something new. Now... I don't believe they are going to shy away from big free agents.

Justin Upton will be a free agent after this season, just a few months after turning 28. The Yankees probably won't need an outfielder, already having Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Carlos Beltran (sorry about this last one), along with some good to great outfielders on their way in the minors, but can they pass on a guy that can hit 25+ home runs with a good batting average?

David Price is probably not going to be a necessity for the Yankees, thanks to them having Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda atop the rotation, along with Nathan Eovaldi, Adam Warren, and CC Sabathia. But do you see the Yanks passing on a left-hander as good as Price? I don't think they would or should.

The craziest thing is that I'm even bothering to ask those questions about Upton and Price. In years past those two would be no-brainers, and some people would already have them both penciled into the Yankees' 2016 starting lineup/rotation. But today I could see the Yankees holding back a bit with the checkbook, and leaving slots open for guys like Aaron Judge and Luis Severino. And as much as it would stink to see those two guys end up with other teams, especially if that were to be Boston, at the same time it's incredibly exciting to not know.