For the last several years we have seen directives from the Yankees brass to cut payroll and get under the luxury tax threshold. The assumption was that we were trying to get under the tax so we could spend big in the 2018 offseason.
Then, we passed on the two biggest free agents. In hindsight, it looks like the Yankees made a good decision. We didn’t really miss Manny Machado or Bryce Harper this year. The same, however, can’t be said about Gerrit Cole.
The Yankees revenue has continued to increase the last four years, and yet, the payroll has not followed suit.