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March 23, 2008
Getting To Know Hank's Little Brother
If there's a Steinbrenner out there, Kat O'Brien can get them to talk! Via Newsday today -
Both Hank, 51, and Hal, 39, are general partners of the Yankees and the sons of principal owner George Steinbrenner. Despite wielding the same ability as Hal to make decisions on all things Yankees, Hank has effectively served as the lone public voice for the entire family (including their sisters, Jenny Swindal Steinbrenner and Jessica Lopez). Hank has dealt with late-night phone calls from the media and held impromptu news conferences, winding up on the back page with some regularity.
Hal, on the other hand, has steered clear of the public eye as much as possible.
...Hal is no recluse. He is a pilot, is an NFL fan (he has multiple Vikings jerseys in his office) and likes classic rock music and the original Star Trek. In person, he is engaging with a dry sense of humor and careful opinions.
Every major decision must be agreed on by the two brothers, Hal said.
And if they can't agree?
"I think we've just decided we won't do it," Hal said. "If it's raising more debt, if it's making a capital expenditure, if it's raising ticket prices, if it's having a $100-million contract on the baseball side, I think the family agrees that we both need to be on board. And it worked really well in the offseason."
The one thing Hal was famously against was trading for Twins ace Johan Santana, who wound up going to the Mets. The Twins were asking for centerfielder Melky Cabrera, righthander Phil Hughes and righthander Ian Kennedy, and a hefty contract extension for Santana also would have been necessary.
"I was against it, there's no doubt about it," Hal said. "Personally, for me, it was an easy decision to say no to. Economically and financially, there were reasons I'm not going to get into. But even from a baseball standpoint ... I'm no expert on baseball matters, believe me, but I didn't want to get rid of the centerfielder, and I didn't want to get rid of Hughes."
There's a part of this that still scares the bejesus out of me. You can only have one quarterback in the huddle. Eventually, I could see this becoming an Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe type battle. And, that will not be good for the Yankees.
Posted by Steve Lombardi at March 23, 2008 08:30 AM
Comments
"You can only have one quarterback in the huddle."
Tell that to Joel and Ethan Coen.
Posted by: brockdc ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.waswatching.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at March 23, 2008 01:35 PM
Actually, there's a much better example of the type of disastrous gridlock that can happen in this exact ownership structure: Wellington and Tim Mara, late 1970's. Pete Rozelle had to step in and recommend that they hire as General Manager the man who would build two title winners: George Young.
I suppose something like that would suit your desires, Steve. Well, the end part, I mean.
Posted by: Evan3457 at March 23, 2008 04:19 PM
I don't see the Mara analogy being applicable because: 1) Well and Tim had a generational divide; and 2) the Yankees' cash cow yields too much cash.
Anyway, as I have posted before, this is why any sweeping proclamations by Hank should be ignored.
Posted by: Rich at March 23, 2008 08:16 PM
Perhaps I'm projecting on their notional personalities as portrayed in the media, but Hank would appear to be like George, favoring immediate solutions, with little regard for long-term costs, whereas Hal seems to be the opposite, looking at the bottom line at all times, and favoring long-term efficiency over short-term results.
The divide will be philisophical moreso than generational, although Hank is 12 years older than Hal, and that's a hefty "big brother" differential.
The Giants cash cow was stable and growing throughout the "Era of Bad Feelings" of the Maras, there were in consonance over the key issue of the time: equal sharing of national television revenue for all teams. The major bone of contention between the two was that the team stunk and they had differing ideas as to how to unstink it.
The Mara analogy will apply if and when George finally becomes incapable of rational decision making or passes on, and if and only if the two brothers come to loggerheads on organizational philosophy and/or specific moves, and only if each has an equal stake in the team, and their two sisters (or their designated representatives) have no stake/refuse to take sides/take sides equally.
Posted by: Evan3457 at March 24, 2008 02:37 AM