Report on Brian Cashman's job security with Yankees even scarier with update
Nightmare fuel for Yankees fans. Read at your own risk.
Earlier this week, New York Yankees fans were hit with an expected gut punch when a report dropped detailing how there's no plan for Hal Steinbrenner to part with general manager Brian Cashman before the 2024 season. Instead, it's probably manager Aaron Boone who will be on the hot seat.
But for as frustrating as Boone can be, a manager is not the driving force of any team. A manager can only influence a small percentage of games with his decision making throughout the year. If this was a 100-plus win Yankees team and Boone's boneheaded postseason decisions cost them, then a managerial change would absolutely be necessary. But that's never been the reality.
The conversation always come back around to roster construction. There aren't enough lefties. There are too many guys playing out of position. There are too many injuries. There are character concerns (Domingo Germán and Jimmy Cordero). Every team deals with its fair share of obstacles and distractions, but the Yankees are constantly hampered by them.
That means it comes down to the person making the personnel decisions, which would be Cashman. Hitting coach Dillon Lawson ended up being a scapegoat. Before the 2022 season, cleaning out Boone's coaching staff represented another pseudo attempt at addressing the problem. The analytics team could be the next to go when the offseason arrives.
Why? Because this is "Brian Cashman's team," according to Yankees insider Bob Klapisch, who revealed the news about Cashman's unlikely departure. He elaborated more upon the topic on The Michael Kay Show, and what he had to say was truly jarring.
Report on Brian Cashman's job security with Yankees even scarier with update
Klapisch says Hal Steinbrenner is a "reluctant owner" who doesn't like the spotlight or making tough decisions, such as firing people or orchestrating shakeups. He also mentioned that if Hal had his choice, he would've never gotten involved with owning the Yankees. That sounds great.
As a result, he has reportedly defected to Cashman for all things Yankees, which has made it the general manager's team, as Klapisch mentioned. It used to be George Steinbrenner's team and philosophy. Now it's Cashman's because of Hal's reported passive ownership.
There's evidence to suggest that's indeed the status quo, too. Does this sound like a general manager whose job might be in jeopardy anytime soon?
Under this current era of complacency, almost nobody of substance has been held accountable. Only Joe Girardi, maybe, whose contract wasn't renewed after he took the Bombers within one game of the World Series back in 2017?
How about from 2010-2016 when this was one of the most disappointing "contenders" in all of baseball (two playoff series wins)? And then from 2018-present day? Over both of those timeframes, just about every big-money acquisition Cashman has made has been underwhelming with the exception of Masahiro Tanaka, Gerrit Cole and Aaron Judge. Everybody else? Either wasted asset or replacement-level player.
Like we've said before, don't root for the Yankees to lose in hope something drastic changes. Nothing will. Fans are probably just stuck with this until further notice.