Yankees Steinbrenner legacy gets new chapter

Hank Steinbrenner is making headlines again. The New York Times' Play Magazine profiles the Steinbrenner clan's transition from the evil despot's dictatorship to family affair. Hank's mouth, as usual, is front and center.Remarks about the Red Sox nation: "What a bunch of expletive that is..." have ESPN's talking heads foaming at the mouth and the headline writers working overtime.

The bluster makes news, but let's look at some encouraging signs. Here's a quote from former head of scouting and player development Woody Woodward: "I would say he has a natural feel for baseball, and I've been with plenty of owners over the years where that's not the case." The article mentions that Woodward took Hank on scouting trips and educated him on the subtleties of the game. While Hank may look and sound like his impulsive father, there is another distinction, conservative brother Hal controls the organizations purse strings. Hal played a significant role in the Yanks dropping out of the Santana sweepstakes.

I've suggested before that we judge Hank by his actions and not his words. Since his emergence, the vaunted farm is intact, Rivera and Posada were overpaid to comeback--a vital move considering the dearth of replacements, the best player in the game will be in pinstripes for life. Not a bad start. A year from now, the payroll, bloated by years of bad acquisitions, will drop significantly, as the new stadium money machine kicks off. Everything considered, the Yankees and the Steinbrenner legacy are in a good place--just ask Hank.