THE YANKEES JUST FOUND $2.6 BILLION. CAN THEY FIND BETTER BASEBALL PEOPLE?

Well, folks, we found Hal Steinbrenner.

I was wondering where the hell he’s been. Turns out Hal hasn't been hiding. He's been doing deals. Big ones.

Yankee Global Enterprises just announced a $2.6 BILLION financing agreement with Apollo Sports Capital, consisting of credit and equity designed to refinance existing debt and help fund future growth. And before Yankee fans start dreaming about what $2.6 billion could do for the baseball team, stop right there.

This isn't about fixing the Yankees. Of course it isn't.

Apollo gets a seat on the Yankee Global Enterprises board. The Steinbrenner family maintains full control. Hal remains managing general partner and MLB control person. So, everybody relax.

Nothing important for us fans is changing. That's actually the funniest part of this entire story.

The Yankees can negotiate a complicated $2.6 billion financial transaction with a company managing roughly $1 trillion in assets, but somehow changing the baseball leadership apparently requires an act of Congress. Think about that. These guys can sit across a conference table from some of the biggest financial minds on Earth and hammer out a multibillion-dollar deal.

But finding somebody better to run the baseball operation? Nope.  And that's really where the New York Yankees are today. Actually, scratch that.

This isn't really about the New York Yankees anymore, is it? Nope. It's Yankee Global Enterprises.

It's the Yankees. It's YES Network. It's Legends Hospitality. It's AC Milan.

It's investments, partnerships, financing, equity, debt restructuring and “strategic opportunities.”

George Steinbrenner built the Evil Empire. Hal Steinbrenner apparently built Berkshire Hathaway with pinstripes. And look, I understand business.

The Yankees are a gigantic global brand. They're supposed to make money. They're supposed to grow. They're supposed to make smart financial moves. Fine.

But here's my question:

When does somebody make a smart BASEBALL move?

Because that's what Yankee fans need to understand about this announcement. This isn't Brian Cashman getting $2.6 billion to rebuild the roster. This isn't the Yankees announcing they're going out and finding the brightest baseball executives in the sport. It isn't an investment in accountability. And unfortunately, it doesn't come with a complimentary new manager.

It's business. And apparently business is booming. Baseball? We'll get back to you. That's what drives me nuts about the modern Yankees.

Money isn't the problem. Branding isn't the problem. The Yankees are a freaking cash cow.

They have the resources to chase the best people in baseball. They should be stealing brilliant executives from other organizations. They should have the best scouts. The best developers. The best coaches. The best manager.

This is the New York Yankees. Why are we constantly settling? Why does Brian Cashman seem to have lifetime tenure? He's complacent. Why does Aaron Boone survive season after season while the organization keeps preaching patience, process and whatever the corporate buzzword of the month happens to be? He's no good.

Meanwhile Hal says this Apollo partnership will help Yankee Global Enterprises pursue “strategic opportunities.” I've got one.

FIX THE DAMN BASEBALL TEAM. There's your strategic opportunity.

Because the Evil Empire really is back. It's just not the Evil Empire we grew up with.

George wanted October. Hal wants EBITDA. EBITDA is basically Wall Street-speak for measuring how profitable the business operation is.

George counted championships, at least publicly. Hal counts earnings out in the open. That's the difference.

George's Evil Empire terrified Major League Baseball because everybody knew he would spend, scream, demand results and do whatever he believed was necessary to win another World Series. Hal's Evil Empire looks increasingly like a diversified global investment portfolio that happens to own a baseball team in the Bronx.

And Yankee fans? We'd just like somebody in the organization to remember that the entire reason this empire exists in the first place is because generations of people fell in love with the New York Yankees.

So congratulations to Hal Steinbrenner and Yankee Global Enterprises on the $2.6 billion deal. The empire is growing. The portfolio is expanding. The money machine keeps humming.

Now maybe somebody can check under the couch cushions and see if there's enough left over to buy some accountability on our actual baseball team. Because apparently that's the one thing the richest damn empire in baseball still can't fix.