MLB

Big money busts offer lesson to Yankees

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PAYING THE PRICE: Yankees general manager Brian Cashman may be under pressure to make a big signing if the Bombers miss the playoffs, but the Post’s Joel Sherman writes that flashy free agents don’t guarantee success. (
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If the Yankees were actually to fall not just out of first place but all the way out of the playoffs, I suspect there will be a groundswell for the organization to behave like, well, the Yankees.

In 2008 when the Yanks missed the playoffs for the first time since 1993, they invested $423.5 million on CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and A.J. Burnett. The further impetus was provided by the need to fill an expensive new stadium opening in 2009.

Well, those seats still cost a ton, the need to feed a winner to the team-owned network remains vital and the tolerance for even a single year out of the postseason remains unacceptable at the top reaches of the Yankees organization. The knee-jerk reaction is the Yanks would throw their wallet at their problems to make sure that they don’t miss the postseason again anytime soon.

And I wouldn’t be surprised if, after all the talk about getting under the $189 million luxury tax threshold for 2014, the Yankees U-turn should this season end poorly. They are not going to jeopardize the brand — worth billions — to save the millions available via the new collective bargaining agreement for going under the threshold.

But this philosophy has problems. The way the game is shaped now, there are plenty of teams with lots of money, which hurts the Yankees because: 1) More top players are signed long term, which worsens the free-agent class. For example, Jered Weaver, Cole Hamels, Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier all would be in their walk years had they not inked multi-year deals. 2) The Yankees are not a whale in an ocean of guppies now. In the past, if the Yanks wanted a player, they financially won for that player. Now, though, plenty of organizations will financially compete with the Yanks for a desired played.

But here is the other item that the Yankees and their fans should keep in mind: Money does not buy happiness nor — more than ever — a playoff spot. These are the five-largest payroll teams: Yankees, Phillies, Red Sox, Angels and Tigers. The season ends three weeks from today and the Yanks are clinging to a playoff spot and the other four are currently not in.

Since the end of last season, four teams invested more to assure a playoff spot in 2013 than any others and if the season ended today, none would be in the postseason:

* The Marlins bought free agents Heath Bell, Mark Buehrle and Jose Reyes to build — by far — their largest payroll ever and the seventh-largest in the game. By midseason, Miami was in sell-off mode and today is a last-place team.

* The Angels made Albert Pujols the second-highest paid player in baseball and also signed C.J. Wilson. Total offseason investment: $317.5 million. That wasn’t enough, so in July the Angels traded three of their top eight prospects to Milwaukee for Zack Greinke. They have all of that and arguably the greatest rookie year ever being produced by Mike Trout. Yet, they not only have so far failed to accomplish the mandate — overtake the Rangers to be the supreme AL West team — but actually also trail the A’s.

Oakland has the AL’s lowest payroll after, in the offseason, trading its leaders in wins/innings pitched (Gio Gonzalez and Trevor Cahill) and saves (Andrew Bailey) and, in August, starting catcher Kurt Suzuki. Yet, Oakland has a better record than the Yankees.

l The Tigers reacted to losing their designated hitter, Victor Martinez, by making Prince Fielder the third player ever to get more than $200 million. And it wasn’t only that Detroit went for overkill, but no other AL Central team did much of anything. The White Sox lowered payroll and went on a modified youth movement. Yet, in July, the Tigers felt compelled to include their best pitching prospect, Jacob Turner, to get Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante from those fire sale Marlins. Detroit, however, still has been unable to overtake Chicago.

* The Dodgers began the season with the 12th-largest payroll in the majors, but are eighth now after going on the greatest in-season spending spree in major league history in which they have added Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Nick Punto, Shane Victorino, Hanley Ramirez (again from the fire sale Marlins), Randy Choate, Joe Blanton and Brandon League.

The maneuvers not only did a number on the Dodgers’ 2012 payroll, but sky-rocketed future payrolls, as well. Yes, they are owned by rich folks who are about to sign possibly the most lucrative cable TV deal in history. So the idea was to make this a team people wanted to watch. But it also was supposed to make this a team that could win the NL West. Yet, the Dodgers still can’t catch the Giants.

I am sure once the frenzy of the offseason begins and teams again convince themselves, “if we just sign (fill in the star’s name) all will be good” that amnesia about this season will set in. But it shouldn’t. The 2012 season is a cautionary tale that spending big guarantees you nothing more than a larger payroll.