Yankees fans can't understand Joel Sherman's critical NSFW rant after Bellinger deal

Joel Sherman of the New York Post is one of the best reporters out there. He gets meaningful and impactful scoops. He has a ton of insight. He's been in the game as long as anybody. New York Yankees fans have certainly valued his relentless work covering the team during the current disappointing era.

In fact, he's been one of the few holding the organization's feet to the fire. Remember the GM Meetings back in 2023 after the Yankees missed the playoffs? It was Sherman pressing Brian Cashman, who went on a wild NSFW rant that has since aged like milk.

Ever since, Sherman's still been critical. He was among the most vocal about the team's sloppy play in the 2024 World Series. After the 2025 season he had a bleak preview for fans, suggesting the organization was probably going to run it back with the same personnel because of their belief in that same group that fell short. He even asked some tough questions after the Blue Jays eliminated the Bombers in October. As recently as this past week, he brought up DJ LeMahieu's awful contract and suggested the front office has (finally) learned from their past mistakes.

Yankees fans generally view him as an ally. The New York media is unforgiving, but Sherman strikes a perfect balance of reason and vitriol ... until his most recent Pinstripe Post podcast episode that now has fans confused.

Sherman went on a bit of an NSFW tirade, suggesting a sect of Yankees fans are "stupid" (he's not wrong) and attention-seeking (he's also not wrong), but most of us are looking around at one another wondering where it came from.

Joel Sherman's anti-Yankee fan tirade has fans confused after Cody Bellinger signing

This was in response to the Cody Bellinger signing last week. The Yankees inked the slugger to a five-year, $162.5 million contract and officially brought the majority of the 2025 roster back for another go-round. It was seemingly the icing on the cake of their offseason after many were unsure if he would return because Trent Grisham (unexpectedly) accepted the $22 million qualifying offer. That move felt like it clogged up the outfield and added an unnecessary expenditure to the payroll when they were already in the dreaded $300 million range (Hal Steinbrenner's words, not ours).

It was a fair assumption. Yes, the Yankees spend a ton of money, but they always have a clear line of demarcation. They have lowered their payroll in the past to reset the luxury tax. They've capped offseason spending multiple times despite possessing various holes on the roster. Some fans were being irrational — absolutely — but many were legitimately worried because of the trifecta of Bellinger's market, Scott Boras' aggression, and the Yankees' overall slugging offseason approach creating the perfect storm for a nightmare.

Not only that, but the bigger concern was that retaining Grisham was probably going to limit the Yankees' offseason pursuits to ... retaining Bellinger and doing little else. And that is exactly where we are at with 2.5 weeks until spring training.

Perhaps Sherman was singling out the folks yelling into the void on the daily with no direction, no knowledge and no tact. We know they exist and we try to keep our distance. But that's not typically his audience. He's appealing to those with the rightful rage and pointed inquisition. And with most fans glad that Bellinger is back in the fold, then why is now the time for this rant?

The rest of the podcast episode is largely tame and the usual tone we'd expect from Sherman. But now that this is getting clipped and shared all over social media, fans are going to want some answers.

Hopefully this cleared some of it up, but unless Sherman issues a response to the criticism, we will probably remain a bit confused as to why it felt like Steinbrenner and Cashman overtook his soul for those 30 seconds.