Yankees GM Brian Cashman is a great explainer. He believes most of us are wrong when we label the team as “cheap” (before Cole). And he’ll tell you why…
Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman claims the organization is the victim of a “false narrative.” He’s read all the stories of late congratulating him and his boss, Hal Steinbrenner, for bringing the Yankees back into the free-spending ways of The Boss.
And how the signing of Gerrit Cole to the biggest contract ever awarded to a player represents a team that has been in hiding for nearly a decade in the free-agent market coming out of the darkness.
And he’s heard the questions – but where were the Yankees before that – when Patrick Corbin, Bryce Harper, Dallas Keuchel, and others went to other teams who were paying more?
Brian Cashman is that kid in class who always had an answer to a question offered by the teacher. And even when his reply was a bit off, he made you believe his response could be right.
Yankees GM Brian Cashman explains…
Such is the case now when Cashman explains to George King III in a story published by the New York Post – “We are just using every tool in the toolbox, not just the big hammer, but it does not mean the big hammer is not available.’’
While the big hammer was surely applied in the signing of Gerrit Cole, the implication is Cashman sees more than one way to achieve a goal.
And if you can do it without spending big money using the big hammer, why not?
Cashman is not bashful about reminding us the Yankees did take on a big contract when they added Giancarlo Stanton to the team.
Cashman counters the argument like the one made here that the Yankees spending habits of yesterday have returned, offering this:
And you know what – he’s right.
Brian Cashman uses all the tools at his disposal
Using all of the tools in the box is Brian Cashman’s forte. And when we think about it, how is that Gio Urshela, Luke Voit, Mike Tauchman, and before that Didi Gregorius, Aroldis Chapman, Tommy Kahnle, Zack Britton, and James Paxton came to be Yankees?
That tool might be the screwdriver Cashman drove into Yankees trading partners.
And we can imagine how Cashman made perfect sense as each team listened to him explaining why the trade is ideal – for them.
Brian Cashman is not a genius, and he is not God.
There are holes in his resume, the biggest one being his seeming lack of focus on rebuilding the Yankees farm system following its depletion via these trades.
Compare Cashman, for instance, to Gene Michael, the GM who handed him the Core Four of Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte, and Jorge Posada – plus Bernie Williams – all homegrown and ready to deliver The Run of championships.
It’s a minor criticism, though, and one which may or may not stand the test of time.
Is there a better GM out there (today)…
We engage ourselves as general managers as writers like myself, owners of a Fantasy League team, or perhaps just sitting with a friend or two over a beer. And often, our lying eyes deceive us. We think we know, but we don’t.
And when we open our eyes to listen – not see – Brian Cashman tells us a different story, a story that makes sense.
The Yankees are fortunate to have a general manager whose talents exceed rappelling down skyscrapers. Brian Cashman just pulled off the biggest coup of the offseason, but there is so much more to appreciate…
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
