Brian Cashman’s Off-Season Is Already Off to a Horrific Start
By Derek McAdam
November 15, 2023
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It has been two weeks since the conclusion of the 2023 World Series, which means the off-season is officially in full swing. Several teams have appointed new managers and coaches, and the free agency frenzy is set to kick off in the near future. The New York Yankees have already been active this off-season in naming James Rowson the team’s new hitting coach, who has previously spent time in the Yankee organization. The Yankees are also looking for a new bench coach, as Carlos Mendoza headed east to become the new manager of the New York Mets.
However, the Yankees’ off-season has been a hot topic in the news over the past couple of weeks. While they have been linked to several top-name free agents, Brian Cashman has been making news in a couple of other ways, of which neither of them have been relatively good news.
First, Cashman launched into an explicit-filled rant defending the Yankees’ front office, specifically the analytics department, during the GM meetings in Arizona. He even said that the Yankees are still “pretty” good, even after an 82-80 season. Michael Kay, who I am by no means a fan of, was critical of Cashman’s response, saying that “As an executive, you are representing one of the biggest brands all over the world, and you’re dropping f-bombs and ‘BS’ and stuff like that? It’s not a good look” for Cashman. Kay is absolutely correct.
It seemed to me as if Cashman was not frustrated at the fact that the Yankees had a sub-par season, but the fact that the media was critical of the team, which they should be. The questions that the media asked were all fair, and while Cashman did not take direct swipes at any specific reporter(s), his language was unnecessary. And it wasn’t just a one-time thing, but something that was said several times in just a couple of minutes.
Cashman may have been frustrated, but it seemed to me as if he was trying to be a tough guy with the explicit language. That was his first bad look of the off-season.
The second issue that Cashman has gotten himself into some trouble with is currently an ongoing issue within the organization. Also last week at the GM meetings, Cashman spoke about the situation involving Giancarlo Stanton, who is coming off a career-worst 2023 season in which he hit an abysmal .191. Cashman said, “I’m not gonna tell you he’s gonna play every game next year. Because he’s not. He’s going to wind up getting hurt again more likely than not because it seems to be part of his game.”
This statement from Cashman sounds like something that I, or any columnist, would say. What he said is definitely a likely scenario to occur in 2024, especially looking at Stanton’s injury history. However, it is certainly not something that I would ever expect to hear out of the mouth of a GM, much less a GM that is speaking about his own player.
Rightfully so, Stanton’s agent Joel Wolfe came to his client’s defense, telling The Athletic, “I think it’s a good reminder for all free agents considering signing in New York both foreign and domestic that to play for that team you’ve got to be made of Teflon, both mentally and physically because you can never let your guard down even in the offseason.”
While I doubt Wolfe’s comments are going to keep the majority of players from even considering the Yankees as an option this off-season, there will definitely be a few that take that route. And Cashman will have no one to blame but himself, although he would never do that.
Cashman also failed to take accountability for the fact that he acquired Stanton before the 2018 season, who still had 10 years remaining on his 13-year deal. While the Marlins were still pitching in to pay some of his salary, the Yankees are still stuck with the number of years on the deal. Stanton has only seen the ALCS with the Yankees once, and while he has had a couple of solid post-seasons, it has not been enough to get the Yankees to the World Series.
This is absolutely embarrassing for the entire Yankee organization. The team is coming off one of its worst seasons in many years, particularly for the expectations they had, and Cashman waltzes into the off-season acting as if there are no problems within the organization, but it’s all just overreactions from the fans and media.
Sorry Brian, you’ve been in charge long enough to understand that mediocrity does not fly in the Bronx. While he’s won four World Series rings as the Yankee GM, he also inherited the first three teams’ core. Since 2009, and arguably even before that, Cashman has not been able to develop home-grown prospects in the minors. After all, how many of those homegrown Yankees are still in the organization from 10 years ago? Aaron Judge and Kyle Higashioka are really the only two names.
Cashman should be ashamed of himself for how he’s handled things so far this off-season. It’s a terrible look for the franchise, especially for a team that hasn’t won a World Series in 14 years and has that expectation every single season. It’s time that Cashman lets his actions do the talking, because his words are causing nothing but harm to the franchise.
