How would you like to be the Yankee GM right now?

[Blizzard1090]

I'm hoping this year will start a trend where both the Yankees and Red Sox will be footnotes in baseball. The Yankees for trying to buy a championship every year and making it harder for smaller market teams to compete and the Red Sox doing the same thing while their owners and fans whine about the big bad Yankees.

It's high time other teams and their fan bases were allowed to experience the joy we've got to the past year.

[Trackmaster]

I'm thinking that it's hard to be a Yankee GM because they've already won 27 championships, and anything less than a championship is a disappointment. And even if you win, it's a "pinstripe" or a "Steinbrenner" championship. It's pretty much like having Obama tell you "You didn't build that."

[Bradysburns]

A-Rod going to miss most of the up coming season, with hip surgery, and oh yeah, the beat writers are claiming, you kept them in the dark.

Jeter is coming off an injury, and might not be ready by opening day.

Martin is gone, need to find a catcher or two.

Your star closer was hurt and rehabbing his injury.

The bullpen has holes and needs shoring up.

You forgot to mention they might lose Swisher.

[Blizzard1090]

I think that even if they had the money,they were going to let Swisher walk. Whatever numbers he gave the Yankees in the regular season,he was dreadful in the postseason,something the O's also should keep in mind.

[Redskins Rick]

You forgot to mention they might lose Swisher.

Oh well, losing Swisher, might be considered addition by subtraction by some.

[MurphDogg]

They're on the books for $185 million this year including arbitration guys. They're desperate to get under the $189 million luxury tax. As of today, they have no catcher, right fielder, and DH. They're third baseman is out for a few months, and they have holes in the bullpen.

The 2013 luxury tax limit is $178 million. They are trying to get under the limit in 2014 when it rises to $189 million.

[CA-ORIOLE]

You forgot to mention they might lose Swisher.

Sounds like they aren't all that interested in re-signing Ichrio either.

[TonySoprano]

Poor, poor Yankees can only go to $189M in 2014 and the fans are upset.

Hal has called an audible on the family legacy and, ultimately, it may result in a smarter, sleeker version of what the Boss' model of win or destruction. Sensibly, as a businessman, Hal wants to pocket the near $50 million that would come in luxury tax and revenue savings by dropping payroll below $189 million by '14.

In the meantime, the Yankees must withstand the pain of guys like Russell Martin, Eric Chavez and Jeff Keppinger slipping through their clutches as every penny must be preserved as the winter meetings conclude.

The Yankees might be in the midst of -- to use one of Brian Cashman's old pet phrases -- a market correction, where they take a step back for a couple forward down the road.

The way the collective bargaining agreement works, if the Yankees fall below the tax threshold in '14, they would then reset their bracket to zero. By 2015, when there is a mammoth free agent class -- currently featuring names like Justin Verlander and Elvis Andrus -- the Yankees possibly could return to being the Yankees of old -- George's Yankees. Without a 50 percent tax, it could be bombs away all over again in two years.

If they were to go over the $189 million threshold after '14, they would be taxed at just 17.5 percent so you can understand the why this appeals to Hal's psyche.

"I'm a finance geek," Hal said in spring training 2011. "I guess I always have been. That's my background; budgets matter and balance sheets matter. I just feel that if you do well on the player development side and you have a good farm system, you don't need a $220 million payroll. You can field every bit as good a team with young talent."

But the fans never want to wait on winning, and we can only imagine what the aging triumvirate of Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera are really thinking these days as they look for support for one more ring.

source - ESPN

[weams]

Poor, poor Yankees can only go to $189M in 2014 and the fans are upset.

source - ESPN

This. The reset threshold is hard and fast on them this season. What they add, they need to subtract as well. They will be fighting us for every Steve Pearce signing there is this season.