For a confluence of reasons, the Mets had become the Islanders (for those who don't understand, the Islanders once played a sport called hockey and were Division II in a Division I market). Did the Wilpons make mistakes? No doubt. Did they react too much to PR? No doubt. But Steve Phillips and Bobby Valentine had them in the World Series in 2000, and if one puts this era in perspective -- after all, the Yankees' 1996-2004 run is historic, especially given the free agent volatility -- then just how loyal the Mets' following remains is a testament to a market capable of exploding.

 

This is a quote from Peter Gammons' latest column on ESPN. Am I missing something here, or is he saying that Yankees' recent run has been accomplished in spite of the insane free agent dollars being thrown around.

 

Huh? The Yankees benefit the most from the insane numbers. They can acquire and keep any great player because no one can match their revenue stream!

Obviously he means player turnover which can be good or bad depending on your talent evaluators and resources (including contract, playing time and anything else that may attract a player). For the Yankees Management to avoid their incompetent free-spending ways of the 80s and 90s (soon to be repeated by their crosstown rival and their former interborough rival on the other coast, Dodgers, later) is a significant accomplishment.

 

You could argue the Yankees it's been far harder to acquire talent in the free agency era than any era of the past. Before free agency they could invest their large media revenues into developing players, and did so better than any AL team, eliminating the need to sell playing time to some 18-year old kid who grew up watching/listening/reading the heroics of Yankee greats. Before farm systems, they could use their large revenues to bail out other franchises and acquire players (half their team in the teens and twenties came way of Boston), although the NY Giants's owners were far worse actually acquiring control of other major league clubs and transferring their best players back to NY.