The New York Yankees failed to make the postseason after finishing 82-80 on the year. Despite this and general manager Brian Cashman calling the season a "disaster," it's unknown if there will be actual major changes this offseason. All that is known is that Cashman and manager Aaron Boone will return, and the team will make changes to the clubhouse (i.e., new dining areas and sleep rooms). Fans were looking forward to the supposed audit of the organization, particularly the analytics department.
There is a new nugget that shows how controversial the Yankees' analytics team is inside the organization.
In a recent article from New York Post MLB insider Jon Heyman, there is one unnamed star on the team that's "so displeased" with the information he receives from the analytics department that "he's said to employ his own personal analytics guy."
Unnamed Yankees star hires own analytics expert instead of using team's information
That's not a good look for the analytics department that a top player on the team doesn't want to use the information they are giving him. So, he brings in his expert to provide analysis to help him out.
The analytics department has been a topic of discussion, given the team's heavy reliance on it and how it led to some of the acquisitions they have made in recent years that have backfired tremendously.
Outfielder and team captain Aaron Judge spoke publicly about the team after the end of the season. Judge said that the analytics department may not be giving the team "the right numbers."
"I think it's just about how we use [analytics] and how we value them is an aspect that we just maybe need to look at again," said Judge, h/t ESPN. "The Yankees are top-notch in the numbers we get. I think we're the best in the game at that. I think it's about funneling those down to the players in the right format.
"I wouldn't say [we are] overloaded. I think it's just looking at the right numbers. I think maybe we might be looking at the wrong ones. We need to value some other ones that people might see as having no value."
While team owner Hal Steinbrenner said that the team was bringing in an outside company to audit the analytics department, that's not the case. Reports indicated that the Yankees were bringing in the company to see how they use analytics.
Steinbrenner spoke at Sportico's Invest in Sports conference this past week and said that there could be change, but they may be "subtle."
"We're going to be making some changes," Steinbrenner said, h/t the Associated Press. "Some may be more subtle than others, but I think we've uncovered certainly things we can do better."
When talking about what changes could be made, Steinbrenner said, "Possibly personnel, but not necessarily personnel."
The fanbase is going to be looking for some significant change this offseason considering how poorly the team played. It will remain to be seen if there will be changes to the analytics department.
