The New York Yankees have been branded "just another team" in a brutal rant despite signing Aaron Judge to a new nine-year contract worth $360million (£294.8m).
The Yankees were in a heated battle with the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres for Judge's signature, after the 30-year-old's standout year in which he was named American League Most Valuable Player. Judge tested the waters in free agency and is believed to have flown to San Diego late in the process to meet with the Padres, but ultimately decided to stay in New York after being offered a deal too good to turn down.
Judge returns to New York tasked with guiding the team deep into the postseason, and ESPN pundit Stephen A Smith believes it isn't good enough to simply secure the signing of the superstar outfielder.
Speaking on First Take, Smith tore into the way the Yankees have been run over the past decade, and declared that without being competitive in the post-season they'll become "another team".
He said: "I want to send a message to the New York Yankees. You're just another team. You stunk up the month of August, some of July and definitely August, we were wondering if Aaron Boone was going to get himself fired, that's how bad things had nosedived.
"You got your act together enough to be in the Post-season and be respectable enough. We knew you had no shot against Houston. It's one thing to lose, it's another to walk into the season - and other than emotional individuals like myself who pick the Yankees because we refuse to pick against them - anybody that knows baseball knew the Astros were the better team. They were better managed, had better talent, had better pitching, they had a deeper roster.
"If you look at that and you're the New York Yankees, enough is enough. It's nice to make headlines today, it really really is. And Aaron Judge is a New York Yankee still for the next nine years, he's 30 years of age, turns 31 in April. He'll be a New York Yankee for the foreseeable, maybe until he's 40.
"But the bottom line is this - as good as retaining him is, we as Yankee fans measure you to a different standard. 27 World Series championships, nobody else comes close. And you haven't been to the World Series since 2009."
Smith went on to warn the Yankees that they might no longer be the best team in New York, considering the Mets owner Steve Cohen is intent on splashing the cash despite the salary cap.
The outspoken Yankees fan also declared that the team's owners, the Steinbrenner family, cannot afford to not spend big in pursuit of success especially when looking around the league.
"You can sit up there and celebrate Aaron Judge staying, but all it highlights for a person like me is the fact that you needed him to be relevant," he added. "Other than Aaron Judge, you've given us nothing to brag about. You haven't lived up to the tradition of the New York Yankees. You've been going home in October, you aren't the Mets, you go home later than them, but [Steve] Cohen is coming, and he's willing to do or spend whatever it takes.
"I don't want to hear about budgets, streamlining stuff, I don't want to hear about watching our wallets. You're Steinbrenners, you got Cashman out there still at the helm of your team. Get it done. I'm tired of watching these pitchers go elsewhere. Aaron Judge is going to have a great regular season, but what's he going to do in the postseason? Is it going to be enough to get you to the World Series? The answer is no."
