Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera have left, Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson might not be far behind and Alex Rodriguez could be suspended for all of next season.
Following the New York Yankees’ worst year since 1992, there are a whole lot of questions and not many answers. Manager Joe Girardi has not even committed to returning.
“I don’t know how it’s going to be here next year,” captain Derek Jeter said after Sunday’s season finale. “The manager and coaches are free agents, too. Anything I would say about next year would be premature and speculation.”
New York finished joint third in the American League (AL) East at 85-77, their poorest winning percentage in more than two decades. The Yankees were 12 games behind first-place Boston and six games behind Tampa Bay.
“The franchise knows what they have to do,” said Cano, who may seek a contract worth US$300 million (Dh1.1 billion) or more as a free agent. “They seem to make the team better every single year. I’m just going to go on vacation and go home and see the family and see where we are.”
For a team that treats early-round play-off games as routine, missing the post-season for only the second time in 19 years was a shock. The only new memories created were tear-filled exits.
“Andy [Pettitte] and Mo [Rivera], goes without saying how special that was,” Jeter said. “But on the field, it wasn’t memorable.”
New York’s high point of 12 games over .500 was reached on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. By early August they hit their mid-season nadir at 57-56.
Not for a single game did New York put their envisioned line-up on the field. After breaking his left ankle in the AL championship series opener against Detroit last October, Jeter did not return until July 11 and went right back on the disabled list (DL) with a tight right quadriceps. He came back late in the month but played in only four games before a strained right calf caused a third DL stint.
Coming off left hip surgery in January, Rodriguez did not make his season debut until August 5 – the day he was given a 211-game suspension by Major League Baseball for alleged violations of the sport’s drug agreement and labour contract. Playing while his penalty was under appeal, he hit .244 with seven homers and 19 RBIs in 44 games and missed the final four because of sore legs.
Mark Teixeira partially tore the tendon sheath in his right wrist in the pre-season. His season amounted to a .151 average with three homers and 12 RBIs in 15 games.
And in his last season before free agency, Granderson hit .229 with seven homers and 15 RBIs in 61 games. His right forearm was broken on February 24 in his first spring training plate appearance when he was hit by a pitch.
Even the replacements got hurt.
Kevin Youkilis did not play after June 13 because of a lumbar spine sprain. Eduardo Nunez was out from early May until July with a left oblique strain. Francisco Cervelli’s season ended April 26 when a foul ball off the bat of Toronto’s Rajai Davis broke his right hand. The catcher also was suspended in the Biogenesis drug scandal.
New York used a team-record 56 players as 21 went on the disabled list for a total of 28 stints, causing 1,493 missed days.
Home runs dropped from a team-record 245 last year to 144, the Yankees’ fewest in a non-shortened season since they hit 130 in 1989. Not counting strike years, it was the largest fall-off in baseball history.
“I think we need more offence overall,” Girardi said.
Fourteen players are potentially eligible for free agency, including Phil Hughes (4-14), Hiroki Kuroda (11-13 after losing his last six decisions) and relievers Boone Logan and Joba Chamberlain.
Jeter is expected to exercise his $9.5m player option. Cano, the team’s best offensive player, may opt to take a higher offer if the Yankees attempt to show fiscal restraint. CC Sabathia remains a concern after going 14-13 with a 4.78 ERA, 76th among 81 qualifying pitchers. The ace missed his final turn in the rotation because of a strained left hamstring.
Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann seems to be a possible target in the free-agent market. The pitching staff could be overhauled.
But if the new guys get hurt, the Yankees might struggle again.
“I don’t care who the guys are in that room,” Girardi said. “When you put the uniform on, you’re a big league player and I believe you have a chance to make the post-season.”
sports@thenational.ae
The biog
Prefers vegetables and fish to meat and would choose salad over pizza
Walks daily as part of regular exercise routine
France is her favourite country to visit
Has written books and manuals on women’s education, first aid and health for the family
Family: Husband, three sons and a daughter
Fathiya Nadhari's instructions to her children was to give back to the country
The children worked as young volunteers in social, education and health campaigns
Her motto is to never stop working for the country
MEDIEVIL (1998)
Developer: SCE Studio Cambridge
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Console: PlayStation, PlayStation 4 and 5
Rating: 3.5/5
KEY DATES IN AMAZON'S HISTORY
July 5, 1994: Jeff Bezos founds Cadabra Inc, which would later be renamed to Amazon.com, because his lawyer misheard the name as 'cadaver'. In its earliest days, the bookstore operated out of a rented garage in Bellevue, Washington
July 16, 1995: Amazon formally opens as an online bookseller. Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought becomes the first item sold on Amazon
1997: Amazon goes public at $18 a share, which has grown about 1,000 per cent at present. Its highest closing price was $197.85 on June 27, 2024
1998: Amazon acquires IMDb, its first major acquisition. It also starts selling CDs and DVDs
2000: Amazon Marketplace opens, allowing people to sell items on the website
2002: Amazon forms what would become Amazon Web Services, opening the Amazon.com platform to all developers. The cloud unit would follow in 2006
2003: Amazon turns in an annual profit of $75 million, the first time it ended a year in the black
2005: Amazon Prime is introduced, its first-ever subscription service that offered US customers free two-day shipping for $79 a year
2006: Amazon Unbox is unveiled, the company's video service that would later morph into Amazon Instant Video and, ultimately, Amazon Video
2007: Amazon's first hardware product, the Kindle e-reader, is introduced; the Fire TV and Fire Phone would come in 2014. Grocery service Amazon Fresh is also started
2009: Amazon introduces Amazon Basics, its in-house label for a variety of products
2010: The foundations for Amazon Studios were laid. Its first original streaming content debuted in 2013
2011: The Amazon Appstore for Google's Android is launched. It is still unavailable on Apple's iOS
2014: The Amazon Echo is launched, a speaker that acts as a personal digital assistant powered by Alexa
2017: Amazon acquires Whole Foods for $13.7 billion, its biggest acquisition
2018: Amazon's market cap briefly crosses the $1 trillion mark, making it, at the time, only the third company to achieve that milestone
Visit Abu Dhabi culinary team's top Emirati restaurants in Abu Dhabi
Yadoo’s House Restaurant+& Cafe
For the karak and Yoodo's house platter with includes eggs, balaleet, khamir and chebab bread.
Golden Dallah
For the cappuccino, luqaimat and aseeda.
Al Mrzab Restaurant
For the shrimp murabian and Kuwaiti options including Kuwaiti machboos with kebab and spicy sauce.
Al Derwaza
For the fish hubul, regag bread, biryani and special seafood soup.
Other simple ideas for sushi rice dishes
Cheat’s nigiri
This is easier to make than sushi rolls. With damp hands, form the cooled rice into small tablet shapes. Place slices of fresh, raw salmon, mackerel or trout (or smoked salmon) lightly touched with wasabi, then press, wasabi side-down, onto the rice. Serve with soy sauce and pickled ginger.
Easy omurice
This fusion dish combines Asian fried rice with a western omelette. To make, fry cooked and cooled sushi rice with chopped vegetables such as carrot and onion and lashings of sweet-tangy ketchup, then wrap in a soft egg omelette.
Deconstructed sushi salad platter
This makes a great, fuss-free sharing meal. Arrange sushi rice on a platter or board, then fill the space with all your favourite sushi ingredients (edamame beans, cooked prawns or tuna, tempura veggies, pickled ginger and chilli tofu), with a dressing or dipping sauce on the side.
Bridgerton season three - part one
Directors: Various
Starring: Nicola Coughlan, Luke Newton, Jonathan Bailey
Rating: 3/5
ROUTE TO TITLE
Round 1: Beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-1, 6-2
Round 2: Beat Naomi Osaka 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
Round 3: Beat Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 6-2
Round 4: Beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 6-0
Quarter-final: Beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2
Semi-final: Beat Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4
Final: Beat Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2
EXPATS
Director: Lulu Wang
Stars: Nicole Kidman, Sarayu Blue, Ji-young Yoo, Brian Tee, Jack Huston
Rating: 4/5
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Most match wins on clay
Guillermo Vilas - 659
Manuel Orantes - 501
Thomas Muster - 422
Rafael Nadal - 399 *
Jose Higueras - 378
Eddie Dibbs - 370
Ilie Nastase - 338
Carlos Moya - 337
Ivan Lendl - 329
Andres Gomez - 322
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Bib Gourmand restaurants
Al Khayma
Bait Maryam
Brasserie Boulud
Fi'lia
folly
Goldfish
Ibn AlBahr
Indya by Vineet
Kinoya
Ninive
Orfali Bros
Reif Japanese Kushiyaki
Shabestan
Teible
A QUIET PLACE
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Joseph Quinn, Djimon Hounsou
Director: Michael Sarnoski
Rating: 4/5
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
Dengue fever symptoms
- High fever
- Intense pain behind your eyes
- Severe headache
- Muscle and joint pains
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Swollen glands
- Rash
If symptoms occur, they usually last for two-seven days