The New York Yankees positioned themselves this winter to
get under the luxury tax threshold for a few reasons. Obviously, the main reason
is because Yankees principal owner Hal Steinbrenner is a cheap bastard and a
coupon clipper, but another reason is because of the financial gains the Yankees
would enjoy if they are able to stay under the luxury tax threshold for the
entirety of the 2018 season. The Yankees would no longer have a tax levied on
every dollar they spent via trades and on the free agency market and the team
would no longer be penalized for going over the cap if they were to sign a free
agent who recently declined a qualifying offer. The final reason the team
wanted to get under the luxury tax threshold, and maybe the most important
reason for many Yankees fans, is so the team can go absolutely crazy spending
money after the 2018 season, both on potential free agents like Manny Machado
and Bryce Harper, but also to keep a few of their own in the Bronx for the rest
of their careers.
New York is going to spend their money in 2019 just like
they do every single offseason, but this offseason we may see a few more
players locked up that are currently employed by the team and less players
being added via free agency. I am talking about players like Sonny Gray and
specifically Didi Gregorius, who I think will receive a contract extension
barring any production or health concerns that arise during the 2018 season. Didi
is set to hit free agency for the first time in his career after his last
arbitration eligible season in 2019, so New York has one year beyond the current
2018 campaign to get Didi locked up long-term.
Didi is possibly the best pure hitter on the team, yes, I
realize what I just said and it wouldn’t be the first time I have been killed on
the internet for saying so, and is also a stellar defender at shortstop. Didi
is a key guy in the clubhouse and he probably owns the best Twitter account on
the team, which shouldn’t count for anything but it does for me anyway. It
shows his character and it shows his willingness and ability to relate to his
fans, something that is not always so easy in a huge market like New York.
The Yankees will extend Didi after the season once the financial
restrictions are gone and the resets have begun, just be patient. It doesn’t
matter if Manny Machado is about to hit free agency and it doesn’t matter if he
grew up idolizing the Yankees, it is not a given that he will sign here and
honestly, I’d prefer Didi anyway. Sue me, unbookmark the site and burn me at
the stake. I stand by my words and I stand by my feelings. I’d rather see the
Yankees allocate that money into their starting staff while keeping Didi rather
than having another surplus and luxury of infielders. Sorry, not sorry.
