For most of this season, the Scranton-Wilkes Barre RailRiders were a more entertaining team to watch than the New York Yankees. The Yankees would even tease their fans with the "prospect watch" between innings of home games, when players like Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez and Ben Gamel were touted as future All-Stars before they even arrived in the Majors. People were excited about the future, which really was the primary motivation for wanting them to cut ties with A-Rod and move on.
Well, that future has arrived. Sanchez and Judge are here, and they're here to stay. Many experts have predicted that they'll be the foundation of the Yankees' next dynasty. And, after just two weeks with them in Pinstripes, you can see why they had everyone so excited. Because they're tearing up Major League pitching the same way they did in Triple A. And they won't be tearing up Triple A pitching ever again. The Yankees have found their starting right fielder and starting catcher for the next 10 years.
Everyone knows the "Core Four" and the reverence Yankees fans have for that quartet. Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera were the home-grown anchors of the Yankees' last dynasty. The team that won four titles in five years and made six World Series appearances in eight seasons from 1996-2003. That's what made them legends in the eyes of Yankees fans. That's why all four of them have (or, in Jeter's case, will have) their numbers on the wall in Monument Park. And that's why Jeter and Rivera (and possibly Pettitte) will have plaques in Cooperstown once they're eligible.
But since the Yankees lost to the Marlins in 2003, they've been to the World Series just once. And since that memorable 2009 title run, each season has been the same as the last. High-priced free agents underperforming and coming up short of a championship, only to be replaced by more veterans after they didn't get the job done. The last time that worked was prior to the aforementioned 2009 campaign, when the newly-acquired CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira proved invaluable for the World Series champs.
That method clearly hasn't been working, so it's worth giving this way a shot. And, it's worth noting, that's exactly how the Core Four Era Yankees became a dynasty in the first place. They hadn't been to the World Series in 15 years prior to that 1996 title, mainly because of George Steinbrenner's obsession with big-name free agents throughout the 1980s. It was only during the time that Steinbrenner was suspended from baseball that Gene Michael was able to build the farm system, which would become the foundation of that dynasty.
Fittingly, it was the day of the 20th anniversary celebration for that 1996 team that Judge made his Major League debut. That was also the Yankees' first game after A-Rod's retirement. Guess who took his roster spot? Tyler Austin also made his debut that day. And they both hit a home run in their first Major League at-bat, becoming the first teammates in Major League history to do that in the same game. Oh yeah, they did it in the same game, too.
Gary Sanchez was already on the team by then. He was called up after Carlos Beltran was traded to take those DH at-bats and give the Yankees a long look at what they had. They didn't need a long look. In fact, Gary Sanchez was probably the main reason for A-Rod's hasty retirement. He's been in the Majors for three weeks, and he hasn't stopped hitting! Sanchez isn't just a constant in the Yankees' lineup, he's their No. 3 hitter! When he doesn't catch, he DHes. There's even been some clamor that Gary Sanchez will make Brian McCann expendable during the offseason.
It's been less than a month, but it's already obvious why there was so much buzz about Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge. Every game I go to, there's at least one No. 24 Tino Martinez jersey and one No. 24 Robinson Cano jersey somewhere in the stands. It won't be too long until the No. 24 Gary Sanchez jerseys start appearing as well...if they haven't already. We're also likely to see No. 99 jerseys start popping up. (In general, I'm opposed to guys keeping their random high numbers after Spring Training ends, but Judge kept it in Scranton and is wearing it now, so it looks like he won't be changing it anytime soon.)
The sample size has been small. Gary Sanchez has had a monster start to his Major League career, but he's bound to eventually endure some struggles. Aaron Judge had a miserable West Coast trip, his first real slump. We'll see how he rebounds. Same thing with Tyler Austin, who had a torrid start, but hasn't played as much as the other two.
I'm not saying they're going to be the new "Core Four." There's no way to predict what's going to happen in the future. But, with Sanchez and Judge being joined by the likes of Greg Bird, Rob Refsnyer and Clint Frazier, as well as Didi Gregorius and Starlin Castro up the middle, the Yankees feel they have the foundation in place for their next extended run of success.
Years from now, we may look back at the 2016 trade deadline as a turning point for that next dynasty, whenever it may be. The Yankees were sellers instead of buyers, yet may end up being the biggest winners of anybody. Because if not for the deals made at the end of July, we'd probably still be seeing the same boring veteran team that had no shot of making the playoffs. They're still unlikely to reach the postseason, but they're at least fun to watch now.
Instead we're getting a sneak peek at Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge. Who are leaving us salivating and the thought of what they might do in the future. And how many World Series trophies the Yankees might collect with them leading the way.
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