The New York Yankees have failed miserably to piece together a championship-caliber team the past few years, despite relying on the ever-important analytics. With a reliance on home-run hitting becoming the Yankees’ primary strategy, they’ve struggled to curate base-runners, which comes from contact-hitting.
Having a healthy blend of contact-hitting and slugging prowess is a recipe for success, which is exactly what the Tampa Bay Rays and Houston Astros have discovered. The Bombers continue to ignore that reality, and one former player had aggressive words for management and ownership.
Rich “Goose” Gossage had plenty to say about Yankees GM Brian Cashman and owner Hal Steinbrenner in an interview with USA Today’s Bob Nightengale:
“I was going to pick him up one day in the clubhouse, and throw him head-first in a trash can. All you would have seen is his feet. And there’s nothing he could have done about it. … It breaks my heart to see what has happened to this game.”
The game has become far more analytical since Gossage’s era, playing from 1972 to 1994, featuring with the Chicago White Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Yankees, San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers, Oakland A’s, and the Seattle Mariners.
Gossage was one of the league’s most lucrative pitchers, posting a collective 3.01 ERA which elevated significantly during the last four years of his career. In fact, in 1981, he recorded a 0.77 ERA, one of the best for a relief arm in history. The storied pitcher transitioned from a starting pitcher to the bullpen, sporting a mustache to go with his tough demeanor. Gossage didn’t stop his attack with Cashman, targeting Hal Steinbrenner:“Hal ought to sell the Yankees. He doesn’t want to be there.’’
Gossage has a point with some of his declarations, but the personal attacks are quite interesting. His hate for analytics is quite clear given Cashman’s approach the last decade or so.
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