Yankees rebuild? That's crazy.(The World Series)

Here's a plan for the Yankees, one that will fall on owner George Steinbrenner's deaf, burning ears but would help restore sanity--hah!--to the Bronx:

Accept that it's over. Reduce everyone's expectations. Take a year off from unrestrained spending, then come back with a vengeance in 2005.

The Yankees haven't won the World Series since 2000, and they're not going to win it next season, either. Their core players are aging. Their farm system is weak. If they don't shift course, a full-blown crash is not out of the question.

Lest anyone forget, the Yankees went 18 years between world championships earlier in Steinbrenner's tenure, the longest such drought in their storied history. Lately, they've been making the same types of reckless mistakes they made then. Brandon Claussen for Aaron Boone. A seven-year deal for Jason Giambi. And maybe Vladimir Guerrero or Bartolo Colon next.

"You analyze your deficiencies and try to shore up your weaknesses," says general manager Brian Cashman, who could be fired or stripped of power. "We'll try to improve our defense, try to improve our success on the offensive side, and obviously now we're going to have some holes on the pitching side and the bullpen in middle relief."

That's a lot to fix after spending $180 million on this year's club. The problem is, the only short-term solution is to spend more.

Including pro-rated portions of signing bonuses, the Yankees have committed approximately $95 million to eight players next season, $93.5 minion to seven players in 2005 and $80.5 million to five players in '06. As one agent says, "Even the Yankees are fast approaching the point where resources will actually matter."