At this point every season, all 30 MLB owners meet in New York City for their yearly meetings. Today marked the start of the meetings and, to start everything off, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner took questions from the media following the conclusion of his first meetings of the day.
As baseball fans know, the New York Yankees are one of baseball’s hottest teams. Unlike their build of the past few decades, the Yankees are made up of young talents, such as Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez.
“For the past three to four years, we have tried not to trade away young talent,” said Steinbrenner. “That consistency has paid off, and fans are excited.”
Despite keeping a grip on the young players, not all of them have shown they are ready for the big leagues yet. According to Steinbrenner, outfielder Aaron Hicks is still one of those still in that transitioning phase.
“Hicks has the ability, and we know that,” stated Steinbrenner. “But, putting ability to practice is something that is tough.” Hicks has talent and Yankees fans know that. If an old outfielder, such a Jacoby Ellsbury or Brett Gardner gets injured, expect to see Hicks slot into the outfield as a temporary replacement.
After answering questions about current Yankees players, the narrative of the questions began to transition to a former Yankee player, Derek Jeter.
This past Sunday, Jeter had his number engraved into monument park, thus cementing (literally) his legacy into the Yankee’s already decorated history books. For Yankees fans all over, this Sunday was a special day.
“The Jeter ceremony was very emotional,” noted Steinbrenner. “Jeter was very emotional and so were the fans. The people who put on these ceremonies always do a great job with this stuff.”
Now that Jeter’s playing career is over, the surefire Hall-of-Famer is beginning a transition to the front office. According to multiple reports, Jeter is attempting to buy the Miami Marlins in a joint bid with former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
If the bid is successful, Jeter will reportedly be in charge of baseball operations for the Jeffrey Loria’s former team. When asked about competing against a Yankee legend, Steinbrenner had nothing but positive words for Jeter.
“Derek is a very intelligent man,” praised Steinbrenner. “He would be an asset to any organization.” When asked does it make it easier that he isn’t in the American League, Steinbrenner said that it doesn’t matter.
“We are going to be happy for him,” said Steinbrenner. “If this is something he has dreamt of doing, we want him to go for it.”