Yankess spend $180 in one week - I hope they fail to make the playoffs

Unlike the Braves who use their farm system to find new talent, the Yankees simply steal players from smaller market teams.

http://www.startribune.com/sports/twins/36669524.html

NEW YORK - With one more bold stroke, the New York Yankees' spending spree went from wild to epic on Tuesday. CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett turned out to be mere stocking stuffers. Mark Teixeira, the first baseman with all-around skills, is the big package under their tree.

The Yankees agreed Tuesday to an eight-year, $180 million contract with Teixeira, the top position player in this year's free-agent market.

After signing Sabathia (eight years, $161 million) and Burnett (five years, $82.5 million), the Yankees downplayed their interest in signing Teixeira or Manny Ramirez, but team co-chairman Hal Steinbrenner asserted last week that "nothing was off the table."

With Teixeira's deal, the Yankees have lavished $423.5 million on three new players. The Red Sox had long appeared to be the most likely team to sign him, but their negotiations with agent Scott Boras broke down Thursday, and the Yankees swooped in -- their usual strategy with Boras clients.

"From the moment we arrived in Boston in late 2001, we saw it as a monumental challenge," Red Sox owner John Henry said in an e-mail to The Associated Press, a reference to being competitive with the Yankees. "We sought to reduce the financial gap [between the teams] and succeeded to a degree. Now with a new stadium filled with revenue opportunities, they have leaped away from us again. So we have to be even more careful in deploying our resources."

Teixeira will get a $5 million signing bonus, $20 million in each of the first two seasons, and $22.5 million in each of the final six years. He has a full no-trade clause.

"They have the revenue sources that most don't have, and they have a lot of money coming off the books this season," said Los Angeles Angels General Manager Tony Reagins, who had hoped to retain Teixeira. "So if they're willing and able to spend, I'm pretty sure they've made some good investments."

Teixeira, 28, is the type of hitter the Yankees hope will revive an offense that dropped from a major league-leading 968 runs in 2007 to 789 last season. The switch hitter batted a combined .308 with 33 homers and 121 RBI for the Braves and Angels. He has reached 30 homers and 105 RBI in five consecutive seasons.

Preparing to move into their $1.3 billion ballpark, the Yankees will hold the four largest contracts in baseball as they try to win the World Series for the first time since 2000. Third baseman Alex Rodriguez has the sport's highest deal at $275 million over 10 years, and shortstop Derek Jeter is second at $189 million over 10 years.

All of this is taking place in a city where cocktail party talk centers on the Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme and the demise of Bear Stearns and Merrill Lynch.

How in the world can they afford this?

• The Yankees already own about one-third of their own regional sports cable network.

• They've started their own concession company in conjunction with the Dallas Cowboys.

• They have a new, $1.3 billion ballpark opening in April.

• The top ticket at the new Yankee Stadium goes for $2,500 next season.

The new stadium on the north side of 161st Street is 63 percent larger than the old, with four merchandise stores instead of one, and 13 restaurants, lounges and food courts for the public, including a martini bar and a steak house. There are 51 available luxury suites priced from $600,000 to $850,000 each, up from 19 at the old ballpark.

Even without the income from the new stadium, the Yankees already have paid out the top average salary in the major leagues for the past 10 seasons, according to the Major League Baseball Players Association. This year's $223 million final payroll, according to the commissioner's office, was more than double the $96 million MLB average and more than eight times Florida's $27 million.

Yet, the Yankees do help subsidize the other teams. New York is paying $26.9 million in luxury tax -- just $141,000 less than the payroll for the Florida Marlins' entire 40-man roster. Throw in revenue-sharing payments, and the Yankees are contributing $110 million to Major League Baseball for this year.

"As long as we follow all the rules, which we do, provide hundreds of millions of dollars, as we have over the past several years to other teams, and spearhead enormous revenue to the commissioner's office, networks and other entities, people should allow us to run our business the way we think is the most appropriate," Levine said.

And still, the Yankees haven't won the World Series since 2000 and haven't even won the AL pennant since 2003.

This article includes material from the Associated Press and the Hartford Courant.