2024-11-01 06:55:02
NEW YORK — One by one the Yankees shared bro hugs and promised to stay in touch over the holidays before saying their goodbyes. The disappointment lingered in every corner of the clubhouse.
The team that prided itself on turning the page faces its biggest challenge: letting go of their appalling World Series collapse. Aaron Judge said the Yankees’ failure in Game 5, which ended their season, “will stick with me until I die.”
But while the players and fans will mourn the 7-6 loss at the Stadium on Wednesday, the front office has already initiated the first of its Hot Stove moves.
According to a source familiar with Hal Steinbrenner’s thinking, the owner will bring Aaron Boone next season. The club will start by picking up the manager’s option for 2025, which would conceivably lay the groundwork for a multi-year deal.
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Second, Steinbrenner has decided to compete with the Mets and all other suitors for Juan Soto. The Yankees will hunker down for what they expect to be an expensive courtship.
Steinbrenner has told others in the hierarchy his offer to Soto will be “competitive.”
While neither decision comes as a shock, they’re the starter’s gun on what’ll be a busy offseason.
For one, the Yankees will have to develop back-up plans in case Soto moves on. And choices will have to be made about several other free agents to be, including Anthony Rizzo, Gleyber Torres and Alex Verdugo.
The consensus on Boone, on the other hand, was fairly straightforward.
Steinbrenner is satisfied with the club’s overall progress under Boone. The Yankees won their first American League pennant since 2009, the best finish of any Boone-led team since he replaced Joe Girardi in 2017.
Nevertheless, the five-game loss to the Dodgers in the World Series wasn’t only embarrassing, it exposed many of the Yankees’ fundamental flaws. Boone will likely steer the Yankees towards more urgent drills in spring training.
Furthermore, despite the incremental improvement of the 2024 team, Boone has been unable to win a championship. Next year will be the 16th in a row without a World Series parade.
That drought is the source of frustration for fans, many of whom blame Boone. Too soft, they say.
He isn’t popular on social media. And although Boone is smart and articulate, his post-game press conferences on YES are usually short on candor.
But none of those traits are enough to alienate Steinbrenner. Unlike his impetuous father, the younger Boss’ management style leans towards stability over blow-ups.
Said one member of the organization, “Hal is tougher than a lot of people know. He’s not a pushover. But if you work hard, he’s loyal. He doesn’t wake up thinking, ‘Who am I going to fire today?’”
It helps that Boone has Brian Cashman as an ally. Although the decision to keep (or fire) Boone is Steinbrenner’s, the general manager is Boone’s strongest advocate.
As long as Cashman has a job in the Bronx, he’ll expend whatever political capital is necessary to keep Boone in the dugout.
That’s where Boone does his best work, if not strategically, then bonding with the players. He spoke to the team after Wednesday’s loss. It was no hurry-up affair. The clubhouse door remained closed for nearly 45 minutes before reporters were allowed in.
When asked how he felt after the season came to a crashing halt, Boone became emotional. He needed several seconds to compose himself before answering.
“I’m heartbroken,” Boone said. “I’m heartbroken for those guys that poured so much into this. The ending is cruel. It always is.”
Soto’s farewell was less soulful. While expressing his regret at losing to the Dodgers, the slugger refused to say he finished the season with a special bond with the Yankees.
There’ll be no hometown discount.
“I’m really happy with the city, the team and how the guys (played),” Soto said. “But at the end of the day, we’re going to take a look at every situation and make a decision from that.”
Steinbrenner has been aware of Soto’s businesslike approach since the slugger was acquired from the Padres last December. The young Boss knew loyalty to the Pinstripes would be a pointless recruiting pitch.
It’s going to be all about the money. Just how much will Steinbrenner need to print in his basement to keep Soto engaged?
“Hal will be competitive, he’ll be right there with the others,” the club source said.
That’s could a tough hurdle to clear, considering the Mets are keenly interested in Soto. And owner Steve Cohen’s financial might far exceeds the Steinbrenner family’s.
So let’s say Soto’s meter drops at $600 million for 13 years. Would that figure scare Steinbrenner off?
Perhaps not, but the Yankees will fall short if Cohen’s raises the stakes to north of $650 million. That would make Soto MLB’s first $50 million-a-year player.
That same money “would buy the Yankees a lot of other players,” said one American League executive. “I’m sure they already have a list in case Soto walks.”
Think: right-hander Corbin Burnes, who could be a co-ace with Gerrit Cole. And Christian Walker, a Gold Glove first baseman. And the switch-hitting Anthony Santander, who could replace Soto in right.
Santander, 30, hit 44 home runs (more than Soto) and drove in 102 runs with the Orioles, only seven fewer than Soto.
It’s a fascinating Plan B that Steinbrenner can float. That is, if Soto can be pressured by the Yankees instead of the other way around.
It might work. You never know.
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Bob Klapisch may be reached at [email protected].
