Nice try, though.

Mathematically, yes, they can. Realistically, that may be too big a hole for even the Yankees to climb out of. Sometimes, great comebacks don’t always take place.

All I am saying re: Cano is you see what’s out there with him. If he can bring you more in return than he can produce with your team, its wise to move him. If he can’t, he can’t. I am just saying, you can’t make him an “untouchable”.

Cute line Randy, but you still didn’t answer the question. You cling to the belief that the Yankees can just keep spending their way out of their problems. We are seeing they not only can’t do that but its the precise reasons why they have problems in the first place.

They are never going to have your pipedream $300 million dollar payroll. Ain’t happenin’ nor should it.

You think spending $100 million dollars on Dice-K are the reasons why the Red Sox are ahead by 7 1/2 games. He has had no impact and the numbers bear it out.

Spending more isn’t the answer. If it was, the Yankees would be in first place since nobody spends more.

I don’t think its a good team. That’s my opinion. That said, your examples of spending more money couldn’t be more off base when assessing why the Red Sox are winning this year and the numbers bear it out.

In fact, the three guys whom the Red Sox have spent the most money on in the off-season, Dice-K, Lugo and Drew, have been three of the under-performers of the team. Shoots, the “spend as much money as you can” theory to pieces.

None of those guys are the reason the Sox are where they are right now. In fact, you can make a pretty good argument that Alex Cora has won more games for them this year than Lugo or Drew combined. That’s $1.4 million (Cora) vs. $22 million (Lugo and Drew) in salaries this year.

Its not how much you spend, its HOW you spend it.

Theo Espstein fired a bunch of people after he hired them to on and off field positions the past few years. Hell, he fired the pitching coach and hitting coach after last season and all they did was help them win a World Championship.

David Ortiz has said Ron Jackson is the reason why he has become the hitter he is now and that didn’t save him. Theo still canned him.

People get fired from jobs all the time in baseball. You act as if Brian Cashman is the only guy who makes hiring mistakes in baseball.

The “great” Billy Beane goes through manager’s like yesterday’s news, got fleeced from Atlanta in the Hudson deal and traded Jeremy Bonderman. EVERYBODY makes mistakes in this business if you last long enough.

Brian Cashman couldn’t predict, nor plan for, the rash of injuries that hit the team in the first month of the season and the complete dropoff of Robinson Cano, Bobby Abreu and Johnny Damon as offensive players.

There isn’t a GM in baseball that can plan for that type of dropoff. Nobody saw it coming.

Going into the season, on paper, this was the strongest Yankee team in years. They had bullpen depth, better starting pitching with the addition of Pettitte, the belief that Clemens would soon arrive and Phil Hughes was on the cusp.

They had what many people thought was the best everyday offensive lineup in baseball.

It just hasn’t panned out as planned to date. That happens.

Its hard to see what he could have done differently, except big another $30 million dollars on Dice-K. Something, I might add, NO GM in baseball did.

So, the big complaint is not spending over $100 million dollars on an average pitcher or another $100 plus million on Barry Zito, which have made his contract be over $160 million given the Yankees luxury tax implications? That would have been INSANE to do because all he would be doing (besides tying his team up with two more bad deals) is fund his opposition with additional luxury tax funds.

That makes no sense.

If Brian Cashman could have predicted that Damon, Abreu and Cano would stop hitting and become automatic outs, it would easy to plan for it.

But, since he, nor anybody else, could have possibly seen that coming, its pretty hard to blame him for the current state of the team.

‘In fact, that’s the problem with the Yankees. Too many guys tied up with long term contracts, making too much money to move. It makes the roster completely inflexible to change.’

But SJ that is why we keep guys like Cano. His next contract wont be for 80 – 100m, it will be 20 – 40m. A contract that almost every team in the league could rake on in a trade. Or that the Yanks would love to have. Unless a can’t miss deal is proposed, and I’m talking true stud pitcher here, there is more value in keeping him for years to come.

Movable parts are what Cash needs though, like Cabrera, all our young pitchers, also Igawa who once he turns it around will be great value as a 4th or 5th starter. I’m not saying we should be collecting these guys just to trade them, far from it, but it is good for Cash to have options. The numbers game means that even with lots of cover next year we are going to have too many major league ready pitchers to keep happy.

We are losing more of the unmovable deals every yr and trying to build with more mid level deals for young layers we develop and add the odd high priced vet. Hopefull Jeter, and ARod will be the main vets for the next 5 yrs.

SJ, before I paniced and thought we are too like minded you managed to come out with a few crazy statements that reassured me we think about this years team very differently.

‘The ultimate irony of this season may be that this team may be out of the race by the time Clemens is ready to pitch.’

‘His biggest mistake? Trying to win AND rebuild at the same time.’

Thanks man. I was starting to worry.

He is 4-2 with a 5 ERA. They spend $100 million for him. Sounds to me like they overpaid. You can find a lot of guys like that around baseball.

You don’t think Beckett’s 7-0 record, Okajima’s under 1 ERA. Wakefield leading the league in ERA, and Papelbon are a “little more” impactful than Dice-K has been for the Red Sox?

Beckett has an under value $10 million a year contract. Wakefield is making less than Beckett. Okajima is making under $2 million and Papelbon isn’t even making $2 million yet.

Seems to me, what the Red Sox are doing is EXACTLY what I have been talking about in this thread. Using money wisely. Not just spending it blindly.

Cashman isn’t spending enough money for you? He just signed Roger Clemens for $28 million dollars! That’s not enough?

The question isn’t spending your money. Its HOW you spend it.

The money the Red Sox have paid for Dice-K hasn’t done anything for them in the standings. Its the other moves that have impacted them in a greater way.