MLB Winter Meetings 2012 Review: Yankees, Mets both losers? That's half right

The 2012 Baseball Winter Meetings, annually the busiest week of the offseason, are over. In the grand tradition of rushing to immediate judgment about the success or failure of anything the folks at The Sporting News have declared their thoughts on the annual swap meet's winners and losers.

And The Sporting News says ... both the Yankees and Mets came away losers.

I have to disagree.

[MLB Winter Meetings Reviewed - MLB Daily Dish]

The Yankees? Big-time losers. They seem paralyzed, unable (really unwilling) to spend any money. General manager Brian Cashman at one point called his team "beggars" at the free-agent bargaining table.

The Yankees are watching their own players leave. They are watching players who could fill the holes they have go elsewhere. Cashman keeps talking about patience and how much talent the Yankees still have, but is he deluding himself? Probably.

The Yankees are worrying about budgets, not about winning. Or even about selling high-priced luxury box seats or getting people to watch YES Network. Maybe their plan will come clear at some point, but right now no one seems to know exactly how the Yankees plan to field a playoff-caliber team.

The Mets? I can't agree that the Mets were losers. It is true that the Mets neither signed nor traded Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey during the meetings. It doesn't, however, mean they won't accomplish either objective. At least now they know clearly what the market looks like.

In reality, the Mets won when they got David Wright to sign long-term before the meetings. When it comes to Dickey there really is no right or wrong answer as to what they should do, so in my mind neither decision can be called a loss.

General manager Brian Cashman, Yankees relatively quiet at Winter Meetings | yankees.com: News

No tangible moves for Mets, but progress made | MLB.com: News

Zack Greinke, Josh Hamilton will set free agent market - Cliff Corcoran - SI.com

Yankees can't even reel in role players like Eric Chavez, Jeff Keppinger and Marco Scutaro in free agency at winter meetings - NY Daily News

R.A. Dickey Rumors: Friday: MLB Rumors - MLBTradeRumors.com

How will Brian Cashman deal with Yankees' new reality?

Yankees 'budgetary constraints' surprise YES Network, as Bob Klapisch says: 'George [Steinbrenner] would have bought his way out of it' - NY Daily News