Co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner has reached a new low for the New York Yankees organization. After seeing the Yankees officially lose all hope of even a miraculous shot at the playoffs, Hank went on a rant about the MLB's divisional format.

Ironically, the Yankees had made the playoffs for 13 straight seasons, during which period Steinbrenner failed to mention any objections to the setup. But now that the Yankees have spent $209M on players would couldn't even get past the $43M Rays, Steinbrenner's a little upset.

Here is the problem, straight from the horse's mouth:

"The biggest problem is the divisional setup in Major League Baseball. I didn't like it in the 1970s, and I hate it now."

The problem is, he hasn't SAID anything about it since the 70's. Hank Steinbrenner has let his father run the team without any interference for decades, and only recently has he started participating in team decisions. Until the Yankees MISSED the playoffs this year, Steinbrenner had not been quoted as having any problems with the divisional setup.

"Baseball went to a multi-division setup to create more races, rivalries and excitement. But it isn't fair. You see it this season, with plenty of people in the media pointing out that Joe Torre and the Dodgers are going to the playoffs while we're not. This is by no means a knock on Torre -- let me make that clear -- but look at the division they're in. If L.A. were in the AL East, it wouldn't be in the playoff discussion. The AL East is never weak."

Right, Hank. The AL East is never weak. That's certainly true THIS year, but what about 1997, 2001, 2002, 2004 and  2005, when 3 of the 5 teams were under .500? Is Hank trying to say that the Orioles, Blue Jays and Rays are perennial powerhouses? Sure, the big-spending Yankees and Red Sox are usually pretty competitive. But let's face it... the rest of the division have been relative doormats for the better part of a decade.

The Rays were in last place 9 of the past 10 years, and were a losing team each and every year until this season. The Orioles are the only team to recently wrestle that last-place spot away from the Rays, and they are currently in their 11th straight losing season, after winning the division way back in 1997. The Blue Jays have had losing seasons in 8 of the last 15 years as well, sporting an overall record of 1160-1198, for an overall .492 winning percentage in the last 15 years.

So is the AL East "always good", like Steinbrenner claims? Not really. Their future is incredibly bright, with 4 teams over .500 this year, and the Rays looking like they might have a great team for years to come, the Blue Jays continuing to improve, and the Sox and Yanks doing what they always do. But history hasn't really shown that the division has been all that much better than any of the others over the years. The top 2 teams have usually been the Red Sox and Yankees, and they are admittedly better than most teams, most of the time in recent years. But until this year, the other 3 teams in the division haven't exactly wowed anyone.

It should be interesting to see how the Yankees move forward after this season. Although their payroll this year is higher than ever, they have seemed to be trying to gravitate towards the younger home-grown talent, and away from signing the huge free agents. This was evident last season, when they didn't make a strong push to sign free agent Johan Santana, a move that they almost would have certainly made a few years ago. But this year, there will be a glut of starting pitching available, including big names like CC Sabathia, possibly AJ Burnett (player option for 2009), Ryan Dempster, Ben Sheets and Derek Lowe. There are also some quality relievers, including Brian Fuentes, Kerry Wood, Dan Wheeler and Francisco Rodriguez, the new single season saves record holder.

Hank's sour grapes attitude is typical of a Yankee organization that is used to winning, and has no idea how to handle the mediocrity that it has been dragged into by poor contracts and overrated prospects. His below-the-belt jabs at his former skipper Joe Torre are also a ridiculous attempt to justify their decision to let him go, even though it was obviously a mistake. I look forward to many more years of a Hank Steinbrenner-led Yankees organization. It's a recipe for disaster, and a formula for failure. And that's just good for baseball.


Steinbrenner Questions Divisional Setup [MLB.com]