The New York Yankees, Major League Baseball’s most successful franchise in history, continue to be a top-tier organization. Having a $200+ million payroll, about $40 million larger than the next highest team, certainly helps. But one has to give the Yankees some credit for spending their money well enough to field a team with a chance to win the World Series every year. In the past 17 seasons the Yankees have made the playoffs 16 times, winning the World Series five times. Recent years haven’t been as successful by Yankees’ standards. Since the Boston Red Sox epic comeback against New York in 2004 the team won one World Series (2009), but also missed the playoffs for the only time during that 17-year stretch and was bounced in the first round four out of six trips. Again, these are by Yankees standards, not a normal team. In 2012, the Yankees are positioned once again to make a playoff run. Continue reading →