I am old enough to remember when the Yankees were the “Evil Empire.”  If there was a player they wanted, they added him no matter what the cost.  Now salaries have ballooned, so you can’t just get great players for a few million dollars.  When it comes to the Yankees, though, when they spend money on free agents, it’s starting pitchers.  And when it comes to hitters, they prefer trades.  So, when your money is spent on big-name starting pitchers, and you have injuries, your lineup doesn’t look that expensive.  So, let’s take a look at where the Yankees have spent their money when it comes to the lineup. 

Well, the Injured List is expensive 

Let’s start with the obvious: the Yankees did budget money for hitters, but two of their three most expensive hitters are on the injured list.  Aaron Judge is the most expensive hitter.  He makes $40 million a year.  Giancarlo Stanton is their third most expensive hitter, making $29 million on the injured list.  So, the total salary of the two hitters on the IL is $69 million (keep that number in mind).

The Yankees spent nothing on the catcher position … and it shows 

 Avert your eyes; the Yankees have gotten a .180/.260/.270 slash line from their catchers combined (which somehow is still better than the White Sox).  Don’t worry though, the Yankees spent next to nothing on catchers.  When you add up Austin Wells, Ali Sanchez, and JC Escarra, it is less than $2.5 million or three guys making basically the major league minimum.

The Yankees don’t spend much on infielders either

The Yankees do actually pay their infielders salaries, and they have a ton of them (some of which they oddly play in the outfield).  Ryan McMahon makes $16 million, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. makes $10.2 million (remember he wants $50 million a year).  The rest of the infielders don’t make much; you’ve got Paul Goldschmidt making $4 million (and he has earned it), Anthony Volpe and Jose Caballero splitting $5.5 million, and Ben Rice making the league minimum.  Add in Max Schuemann and Amed Rosario, and the army of infielders combined make less than one injured player, Aaron Judge.  

The Yankees outfielders are paid pretty well

If you count his signing bonus (which I don’t), Cody Bellinger is the highest-paid player on the team.   With his annual salary of $36.5 million plus Trent Grisham’s $22 million, they make less than the two players on the injured list.  Add in Jasson Dominguez and his minimal salary, and it still doesn’t get anywhere close to Judge/Stanton

So why is the Yankee offense struggling?  Simple, just look at the salaries. Add up all the hitters’ salaries on the active roster, and it is under $100 million.  That is big bucks for the Kansas City Royals, but for a team with a $292 million payroll?  The Yankees have prioritized paying their starting pitchers (Max Fried, Carlos Rodon and Gerrit Cole make $78 million combined), but they haven’t prioritized hitters outside of the two expensive players who currently sit on the injured list.  As your parents told you growing up, you tend to get what you paid for!