New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner continues to infuriate the fanbase.
The New York Yankees are a perennial playoff team and are generally contending for World Series championships every year, but for a fanbase that has seen so much success over the years, that isn't enough.
The Yankees have made just one trip to the Fall Classic since last winning a title in 2009, and it resulted in an embarrassing five-game loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Last season, New York was knocked out of the ALDS by the Toronto Blue Jays, which surely had George Steinbrenner rolling over in his grave.
To make matters worse, the Yankees were mostly inactive throughout the winter while other teams — like the Dodgers — made moves to improve.
Yes, New York re-signed Cody Bellinger, but Yankees fans were expecting more, and as every year pass, owner Hal Steinbrenner becomes more and more of a pariah in the Bronx. That's especially when compared to his father.
Bob Klapisch of NJ.com recently caught up with Hal near the entrance of George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa and attempted to speak with the embattled Yankees owner, but, as he usually does, Hal avoided questioning and slipped away.
Such has been the case for Steinbrenner for most of his tenure, and Klapisch — as well as the vast majority of Yankees fans — have had enough.
New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner. Credit: Jessica Alcheh-Imagn Images.In a scathing piece where Klapisch criticized Steinbrenner for his evasiveness and his questionable decision-making, Klapisch went on to urge the 56-year-old to be more like his father and less like, well, himself.
"I think there’s a similar intensity lurking somewhere in Hal’s psyche. Well-coiffed and more articulate perhaps, but still capable of a tabloid moment," Klapisch wrote. "So stop hiding, Hal. Drop the facade. Find that wild animal. Step in front of the camera and be a savage. Somewhere, somehow, the old man would love it."
Klapisch has a point. The more Steinbrenner hides from the media, the more ire he draws from the fanbase, because it makes it appear that he doesn't care. At least not as much as fans think he should.
Steinbrenner has been heavily criticized for not valuing winning nearly as much as his dad, as evidenced by his lack of spendthrift behavior in free agency (even though the Yanks do have the third-highest payroll in baseball heading into 2026).
Seeing Los Angeles (and even the Mets) land most of the big names has been maddeningly frustrating for the Bronx faithful, and based on Hal's demeanor, it doesn't appear that is going to change anytime soon.
Unless, of course, Hal takes Klapisch's advice and does embrace that "wild animal" that may be lurking somewhere within him.
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