Great column by Henderson

[TripleB]

It's Fun Seeing Yanks Chafe As Deadline Nears

JOE HENDERSON

Published: Jul 30, 2004

I t is with a certain bemusement that we watch the hours tick, tick, tick away from the New York Yankees.

The Yankees have been desperate to acquire Randy Johnson from Arizona before Saturday's 4 p.m. non-waiver trade deadline, but ... surprise!

They haven't been able to meet Arizona's price, and now, according to the Chicago Tribune, talks have broken off. Not because the Yankees don't have the money or the will, but because they got so focused on buying everybody else's players that they forgot to develop any of their own.

They don't have anything to trade.

We'll cue the laugh track at this point because price is never an object when it's really important to put someone in pinstripes.

It's pretty much the same junk every year. We get to the trade deadline, and everybody's dumping stars and the Yankees are waiting to gather the cream.

It doesn't seem so this time, though, which may get D'backs owner Jerry Colangelo some votes for baseball man of the year. There are barely concealed snickers in all the other league cities because the Yankees finally found something they could not buy.

They have only their own greed and shortsightedness to blame.    ;D

A Thin Farm System

That's what happens when you continually sacrifice long-term goals to meet short-term needs, as the Yankees have done darned near every year.

If 4 p.m. passes Saturday and the Yankees weren't able to somehow salvage this, you figure someone loses their job. What ought to happen, though, is a four-alarm clang at Legends Field.

The Yankees won four World Series in five years because of home- grown players such as Bernie Williams, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera.

The Yankees built a dynasty, then tore it up because they impatiently chased the flavor of the month in free agency and trades. Their top farm talent became trinkets to acquire replacement parts for the big club, but you can't keep doing that every year.

It catches up.

It says something that the Devil Rays - yes, the Rays - are using Louisville Sluggers to swat away suitors who try to raid their rich minor-league system, while the Yankees were trying to cobble enough prospects together to meet Arizona's demands.

Oh, who are we kidding?

The Rays might have all the prospects, but George will just wait until those players reach stardom - we know who they are - and sign them as free agents.

Stand Pat

Speaking of the Rays ...

We'd like to break some news here that they've got a big deal cooking, but the truth is we'd have it a lot higher up in this column if that were the case.

General Manager Chuck LaMar has cauliflower ear from answering too many phone calls in recent days about possible trades, but those talks don't go far.

``It's a sign that we have more players that everybody wants,'' LaMar said. ``It comes down, as it always does, to one question: Is this trade going to make us a better club in the future?''

Probably not.

Unless someone overpays for Victor Zambrano, the Rays probably will look the same at 4:01 p.m. Saturday as they do now.

As for the Yankees, they wanted to look different. About as different as a scraggly, 6-foot-9 left-handed pitcher destined for the Hall of Fame can make them look.

Well, Saturday's not here yet, so until then it's best to remain at least a little skeptical. But it sure is fun to watch them squirm.

[Velcro]

Very nice find trip.

[TripleB]

[Velcro]

Now that is an even better read!

[TripleB]

Smazz has been strangely absent from this thread ......

[Velcro]

Bonds

(now he'll show up)

[Bullshiznitz]

The funny thing is the Rays rich minor league system just got richer because someone did overpay for Zambrano.  

On the Yankees buying our players, that may be true in some cases, but the fact that Naimoli has shown he is willing to put money into the team (the now infamous debacle of the "hit show"), gives me some confidence that the Rays may be able to keep most of their rising stars.

[smazza]

i do work sometimes fellas

yankees were smart not to over pay for  johnson

yankees are fine and posied to do well in post season

[KnightsRule]

i do work sometimes fellas

yankees were smart not to over pay for  johnson

yankees are fine and posied to do well in post season

Can say that now but if they dont win the WS then they screwed up by not getting the Unit.