Ed. Note: The following was written by unabashed Yankees fan and longtime friend of the site Tim Whitman for the original iteration of SportsAngle on Dec. 28, 2002, and is reposted by request of the author as a tribute to George Steinbrenner, who passed away this morning. I don’t necessarily agree with everything here, but Tim – who used to work for longtime Braves general manager John Schuerholz – theorized that the Boss wasn’t what was wrong with baseball’s economics, and could call attention to its ills and institute change by manipulating the system.
Yes, Red Sox fans, Mets fans and fans of those small market teams out there, you read that right. George Steinbrenner will save America’s favorite pastime. And yes, for the record, I am a die-hard Yankee fan and a proponent of Mr. Steinbrenner’s business acumen.