Moose: Yankees mindset shifted when they decided to try and 'outsmart' rest of league

Moose spent much of Thursday’s show calling out the Yankees for their mentality in the modern era, one that does not line up with the win-or-else mantra from the days of George Steinbrenner and the last dynasty in Major League Baseball.

But Moose says another mentality shift is equally responsible for the Bombers’ World Series drought, one that is also a far cry from when The Boss was in charge: while the Yankees still “print money” in Moose’s eyes, there is now more of an initiative to out-smart teams rather than flexing the organization’s financial might as the most valuable franchise in the sport.

“There was a point in the time…the Yankees as an organization said ‘we’re gonna try to be a little different,’” Moose said. “We have unbelievable wealth, we have that Scrooge McDuck kind of money, and we’re gonna go out there and overwhelm them with our brain power.’ That’s what they decided to do. Along with that came the accountability going out the door.

“I’m not saying the Yankees need every single star to go out there and win. It’s the mindset and the cultural shift that bothers me.”

The Yankees still have a payroll over $300 million, but in recent years, they have passed on star free agents that could have had an impact on the roster, like a Corey Seager, Carlos Correa, or going back further, Bryce Harper. Many argue that George would have been in on those big names, but his son Hal has taken a different approach. Moose, pointing out the immense profits the Yanks made last year, says the current Yankee owner should not be publicly declaring that the team’s current payroll is not sustainable, and instead using that strength of the franchise in an effort to go and get a title, not trying to out-smart smaller market teams, which Moose says was front and center in the 202 ALDS when they pulled Deivi Garcia for J.A. Happ after one inning in game two.

“They tried to out-Rays the Rays,” Moose said.