[wdcbooks]

The Yankees are in trouble and it's been a long time in the making. I believe the problem this time can't be fixed by the Steinbrenner method of hiring and firing. The telling moment was last season when they couldn't get Randy Johnson for the stretch run because they had no prospects and no farm system to tempt the D-Backs.

There is a limit to what they can spend, and the amount of money being spent on useless contracts is building. They are old, injury prone, and lack any semblance of team chemistry. All that being said, they are still one of the best teams in the game with their roster of purchased talent. That will fade unless they constantly restock with free agents.

I think we are entering a period of several years of .500 baseball for the Yankees while they clear the contracts of some of their worst mistakes, groom some home grown talent, and get drastically younger at every position. Steinbrenner's money creates the illusion that everything is fine, but this pattern of mismanagement just isn't sustainable.