Yankees Would Be Lucky to Finish Last in AL East

The New York Yankees have been one of the top teams in Major League Baseball for nearly two decades. Today, there are few willing to argue that this will continue into 2013.

The Yankees — who own baseball’s largest payroll and a stockpile of perennial All-Stars — will trot out a starting lineup on opening day certain to make the Pinstripe faithful shudder. Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira and Curtis Granderson will all be absent for the team’s season home opener against the Boston Red Sox. The latter three players will be out for an extended period of time.

New York does not appear to be title contender. Unless its collection of old, washed up players can put together the types of seasons that are years long behind them, a presence in the postseason may be unattainable as well. With the Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays all built to compete in the present and future, simply getting out alive in the American League East division will be a difficult task for the Bronx Bombers.

In fact, due to the competitiveness of those aforementioned teams — plus the hated Boston Red Sox — it is entirely possible the defending AL East champs could very well finish last in the division. But that wouldn’t be a bad thing.

Now… Yankee fans… hear me out on this one.

The Yankees have won the division title in 13 of the last 17 seasons. They have won five World Series championships in seven appearances, built on stellar teams that were stacked with talented superstars.

The desire to win has dominated the franchise and its fans for the entirety of this current run of success. As a result, however, the team has not developed its young players. And all the while, it’s been fielding aging veterans whose deterioration has become increasingly harmful to the team’s championship aspirations each year.

Since the late 90’s, the club’s best and most dependable players remain the same:  the captain Jeter,  starting pitcher Andy Pettitte and the greatest closer to ever play the game Mariano Rivera. The latter two are over 40 years of age. Jeter, at the not-so-youthful age of 38 meanwhile, is returning from a devastating ankle injury while fighting Father Time himself. Rivera has already announced his intentions to retire at the end of the year. Finally, Pettitte is never a sure thing.

The great Yankee Empire appears to be falling — and it was inevitable — but how they handle it will dictate how long it is before their return to the pinnacle of Major League Baseball.

Last place in the division would be a blessing in disguise. It would provide a low draft pick to bolster a farm system slim on promising young talent, and enough reason to trade guys like outfielder Granderson, second baseman Robinson Cano and corner infielder Kevin Youkilis for prospects. Doing so would enable the Yankees to open up some room on the payroll and infuse some much-needed youth within the organization.

For Yankee fans, the thought of hanging out in last place is a terrifying thought. But the franchise desperately needs a change of direction.

For close to a decade now, New York’s way of business has been stale. Year after year, they piece together a roster full of players over the age of 30 and hope for the best. In turn, they do earn a playoff berth. But the team is regularly eliminated far sooner than one with a $200 million payroll should.

One season of bad baseball could open the doors for far greater success in the long term. Yankee fans demand winning baseball, but sometimes, you have to lose to ensure victory down the road. That’s something they may have to accept in 2013.

Louis Musto is a writer and host of upcoming show, The Morning View, on the Sports Journey Broadcast Network. You can follow him on Twitter @LouisMusto.