Yankees can't afford Beltran
By lefty
Move over Reggie, there is a new Mr. October in New York — and he doesn’t play for the Yankees. And do you know why? I'm glad you're sitting because you won't believe this reason — they couldn’t afford him!
Carlos Beltran, who hit .435 with 8 homers and 14 RBI’s and stole 6 bases in 12 postseason games, is the newest Metropolitan. For those numbers the Mets rewarded him with a 7-year $119 million deal along with the no-trade clause he sought.
Omar Minaya is wasting no time in trying to reverse the recent trend of poor and inefficient moves by the Met front office. In what is sure to go down as one of the most successful off-seasons in Met history, he’s signed the best pitcher and now the best hitter on the market. The Mets have reportedly also told Beltran that they would still go after Carlos Delgado even though Delgado is rumored to be interested in Texas.
Minaya has lived up to the hype he and the Mets have been building in this off season, and are making Met fans forget about the lame attempt to sign Vladimir Guerrero last year. Although far from guarantying the Mets a pennant, Beltran gives the Mets instant gravitas and a new image of youth and potential.
But what is equally as interesting are the reasons why the Yankees didn’t persue Beltran for their own center filed. Anthony Rieber and Jon Heyman of Newsday report in this story, that the Yankees may have finally clawed their way to the depths of George's pockets. They write that Steinbrenner ultimately decided that he could not meet Beltran's asking price because he was concerned about the money lost to the luxury-tax. The rumor a few weeks ago was that "The Boss," wanted either “The Unit” or Beltran in his camp opening day. Could it be he couldn’t afford both?
I for one am glad he went with the 41 year-old guy with a history of back trouble who plays every four days, than the 27 year-old every day player who seems to shine when the leaves start to fall.
It appears the Mets and Yankees may have swapped roles. The Mets are the new New York team tossing out the cash for top free-agents, and the Yankees are going after old men. Hey George, maybe you should try and sign Mo Vaughn!
