Yankees: Joe Girardi is crossing a bridge with the media

Yankees managers, over the years, have shown varying ways to handle the media. Some have excelled at the task while a few have gone down to defeat. The team’s current manager is finally crossing a bridge. Is it working?

The Yankees have seen it all when it comes to how their managers handle the media. From Casey Stengel, who treated the media as a prop in a theatre production, with an ever ending treatment of self-infused comedy, to the soft-spoken words from Joe Torre, as settling as a bedtime story read by Mom, and to the fiery tirades of Billy Martin, these relationships remain as compelling as ever.

Joe Girardi has been on the scene for a decade now, but until recently he has remained off-stage, even when he’s on-stage if that makes any sense. Low key, but with a fire that burns inside, Girardi has, for the most part, read the words from a script.

Seldom have seen any outbursts of emotion during his pre and post-game press conferences. Not that it should be a judgment on the quality of Girardi as a manager or a man, but it resonates with the fact that dealing with New York media is no walk in the park, and it takes time and effort for a manager to make it right.

Throwing Away The Script

In the last two weeks or so, it strikes me that Girardi is turning a corner in becoming more forthright when dealing with the media. He is glum when he’s supposed to be glum, and no longer seeking that one aspect in a Yankees loss to show the cup is still half full.

Girardi, to his credit, has also abandoned the time-worn tradition of not calling out one of his players when the situation demands it. He didn’t hesitate, for example, in sending a public message to Brian Cashman that “This guy (Chris Carter) has to go”.

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Similarly, he has been all over Gary Sanchez, publicly and privately, for his defensive woes in leading the league in errors (11) and passed balls (10).

Girardi must recognize the risk he is taking when he “goes public,” especially with a young and, in many ways, still immature player like Sanchez. But he’s doing it. And it seems to be working.

Because in the same way that you give a vehicle more power when going up a hill, in baseball, sometimes what you need is to apply more pressure, not less, with a player who is struggling.

Delivering That Kick In The Ass

Notably, Aaron Judge has not received the same treatment as Sanchez from Girardi. But my thinking says he’s next. And Girardi will figure out a way to step it up a bit, quite publicly, giving Judge something to think about in the same way he has done with his All Star catcher.

It’s the type of leadership that can only come from “the boss”. A firm kick in the ass if you will.

Choosing the media to send a message is one thing, but it needs to be backed up with a verbal message that also comes directly from the boss. Girardi, noticeably and to his credit, didn’t forget to do that with Sanchez.

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Overall, Girardi has done a masterful job of tweaking his team here and there, and he should be in contention for the Manager of the Year award.

But it’s a subtle change in course like the way he’s handling his players, conjoining them with the media, which spells the actual value of Girardi to the Yankees.