yankees228

This team improved drastically from last year to this year, in almost every single facet of the game. The three additions were part of that, absolutely, but they were far from the entire story. If some of the guys in this lineup don't have the resurgence that they ended up having, they don't win the division. If A-Rod doesn't have a huge postseason, they probably don't win the World Series. If Pettitte doesn't really step it up in the second half, they don't pull away from Boston, and they probably don't win the World Series. If the bullpen didn't improve (especially the emergence of Phil Hughes, which represented the turning point of the year in my opinion), they don't win the division. Going into the year, many people talked about how the Red Sox had a significant bullpen advantage over the Yankees. Over the course of the season, the Yankees significantly closed that gap. That was an enormous contributor. There were just so many things that were different from last year, and years before that, that it is impossible to narrow it down to just three players. Those guys were immensely important to this team, without a doubt, but so many other things were as well. For you guys to just select Sabathia, Burnett, and Teixeira as the main difference, above all everything else, well, it's dishonest.

Then by the same logic, how did the Red Sox not "buy" their 2007 championship? In my opinion, they didn't, but by your logic they did.

Lester, in response to your post, I'll post this once more. Not sure if you saw it, but if you did, you're only rehashing things that have already been said, instead of responding to a legitimate counter argument.

That's a bit of an exaggeration. I've read a lot of sentiment about the Yankees' championship being bought, but I've read just as much sentiment that highlights many of things I've already stated (and things like chemistry and such, which I choose not to comment on because I'm not a player or in the clubhouse).

msubulldogs, those late calls really killed you on Saturday, right?

I mentioned Teixeira's defense. It was definitely an improvement over Giambi. But you said that those guys made the big difference over last year, and I was pointing out that guys in their spots had pretty darn good years. Mussina's 2008 season was very comparable to Sabathia's 2009 season. Giambi was very productive, offensively, during his time in New York. They wouldn't have done the same thing this year, but we're talking about what made the difference this year, as opposed to past years. Like I already admitted, the three free agents played a big role, but so did improvements from a lot of other guys, and a lot of other areas on this team.

I don't necessarily agree with that. While Sabathia was great in the postseason, they had a guy that matched his production last year, and they had a guy that in 2006 and 2007 came very close. Burnett was just above average during the regular season, and had an up and down postseason. Teixeira was great this year, but Giambi was solid last year. Teixeira was a huge upgrade defensively, but he also had a bad postseason. Those three guys had a big impact this year, but to make a definitive statement about them being the difference is certainly debatable. Lets take a look at other guys who contributed to making the difference. Derek Jeter had his best year since 2006, and increased his OPS from last year by 100 points. He also showed drastic improvement defensively. Johnny Damon had the best year of his career. While Alex Rodriguez, mainly due to injury, didn't have as good a regular season as he usually does, he had a fantastic postseason, something that he hadn't done yet in New York (this represented one of the biggest things that separated this postseason from past postseasons). Hideki Matsui had one of the best years of his career, and improved drastically from last year. Jorge Posada rebounded from a year that he missed most of, and had one of the better years of his career. Nick Swisher had a career year. Robinson Cano had one of the best years of his career, and after posting an 86 OPS+ last year, he rebounded with a 129 OPS+ this year. Melky Cabrera had over a 100 point OPS increase from last year. The bullpen, during the regular season, was probably the best the Yankees have had since their previous championship years. The three free agents, along with a lot of other guys, helped make the difference this year.

And I can just as easily say that without core four, no WS for the Bronx. Simple as that. We're rehashing the same stuff. Whatever. I know how you guys feel at this point.

BS21 pulled out the chart in response to his comment about Westmoreland, with no mention of Anderson.

I'm not, because my point all along has been that, while those free agents played a big role, there were other contributing factors. I feel like those other factors are being dismissed when the entire championship is considered to be "bought".

Probably not, and that's fair. But I think his overall point has some merit. He admits that Westmoreland has all the tools, but says that it might be a bit to early to make a true projection on what kind of Major Leaguer he is going to be. To me, that's fair.

Right, I corrected it with the edit. My bad. But points one and three still stand.

This isn't fair at all. They don't win the World Series without Sabathia, Burnett, and Teixeira. However, they also don't win the World Series without the guys they brought up through the system. What the most important factor is, is something that is completely up for debate. Which brings me back to my initial point that the other things that contributed to the Yankees' championship should not be dismissed.

This makes absolutely no sense, for so many different reasons. 1. Roger Clemens never played for the Mets. 2. Manny Ramirez didn't come up with the Red Sox. 3. As for the main point, in part, you're correct, but the Yankees were still the team that developed Pettitte. EDIT: Now that I read it again, if you meant Hanley, my mistake. Points one and three still stand.

It doesn't. I won't speak for Jacko, but what bugs me is when people just pass off this Yankees' championship as a purchase (especially concerning Sabathia, Burnett, and Teixeira). Those guys were a huge reason why they won, along with other free agents they've signed in the past, but there were a lot of other reasons, ones that are ignored when this championship is passed off as just being "bought".

If someone other than Jacko had made the post about Westmoreland, would you guys be all over that person?

OK, well, that's a bad job by the source Jacko posted. But, that still leaves the Yankees with a high percentage of home grown players, relative to the other teams in the league. While Jacko's facts are wrong, his main point still has merit.

Dipre, I really don't think this is a fair response to Jacko's comment. Granted, if it wasn't for the Yankees' financial advantage, guys like Pettitte and Posada might not be here. I understand that. But when you're having a conversation about how the Yankees' 2009 championship team was built, Jacko's statement is completely fair and relevant.