The Mets reportedly pulled off the free agent shocker of the offseason by signing Carlos Correa overnight, just hours before the Yankees welcomed their free agent prize in Aaron Judge back to the Bronx.
Asked about Steve Cohen’s historic spending spree that has now reached $800 million this winter, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner praised what is to come for the city of New York, while also adding that such a spending spree is something that needs to be “looked at.”
“It's great to have two great New York teams. We’re not gonna be great this year…I just think it's great for the city and great for the fans,” Steinbrenner said.
“I think it’s something to be looked at. Another thing I said in March, which I truly believe, is that every fan of every team, nobody should have to go into spring training thinking their team has no chance of making the playoffs. That’s just not good for the game. That’s why all the owners have worked on competitive balance the last 10 years, and why I think competitive balance is significantly better than it was 10 or 15 years ago.”
The Yankees, who could have the second highest payroll in baseball this season, have had their own spending splurges this winter to bring back Judge and sign Carlos Rodon, but Cohen’s offseason is unlike anything seen before in the sport, but Steinbrenner maintains that a team can win it all without throwing out that kind of money in free agency.
“I was joking with somebody previously that 10 years ago, you’d always hear me say that you shouldn’t have a $200 million payroll to win a championship,” Steinbrenner said. “Well, I’ve modified that slightly. So, you shouldn’t have to have a $300 million payroll to win a championship. As most teams don’t. The Astros didn’t.”
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