Ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline, the Yankees never made a decision to buy and go for outfield bats and make a push for one of the AL Wild Card spots, or sell off players on expiring contracts to get something of value in return such as Harrison Bader, Wandy Peralta, or Isiah Kiner-Falefa. One would have to wonder, what is next for Brian Cashman and the Yankees? How long can the team endure the incompetence of the front office.
During yesterday’s 5-2 loss to the Rays, Brian Cashman addressed the media after the deadline, Cashman used the cliche line that Nestor Cortes, Jonathan Loaisiga, and Aaron Judge returning would be better than potential trade. Though pieces like Tommy Pham, Lane Thomas, Jeimer Candelario among others were all available that Cashman did not push hard enough to acquire. The Yankees acquired two relievers, Keynan Middleton from the White Sox and Spencer Howard from the Rangers. Cashman went on to say that he believes in the current roster and that they have better play ahead of them. Though objectively true, the Yankees sit in last in the AL East at 55-22 and 3.5 games out of the final Wild Card spot in the AL.
Cashman and the Front office deliberately went into the season without a left fielder, betting on Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Cabrera, neither of which are on the 26-Man roster. The position has seen time from players like Jake Bauers, Billy McKinney, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa among others. Though Bauers has had a good year and to his credit has been one of the Yankees best hitters this season, the Yankees could have addressed the position in the offseason. Cody Bellinger, Michael Conforto, and Masataka Yoshida are among the free agent outfielders that the Yankees were interested in, the Yankees could have signed any of them, and the production in left field would be significantly better than it has been.
After the season, however the Yankees finish, weather in the playoffs or not, or even above the .500 mark or not, Hal Steinbrenner will have to answer for the teams play and roster construction. Steinbrenner in June said that “He would start to ask questions” if the Yankees fail to make the Postseason for the first time since 2016. In which the Yankees have only had 4 such seasons since Brian Cashman took over in February 1998. At this point, the Steinbrenner family cannot justify bringing Cashman back next season, the moves that he has made (or lack thereof) could and should cost him his job, especially if the Yankees finish under .500 which is definitely not outside the realm of possibilities. If that does happen, there is absolutely no way Hal Steinbrenner can bring back Brian Cashman or Aaron Boone.
If the Yankees continue to struggle, they need to do what they did in 2016. Stop giving playing time to struggling veterans and see what you have in the farm system. In 2016, it was Aaron Judge, Tyler Austin, and Gary Sanchez getting playing time throughout the second half. The Yankees need to give consistent playing time to Oswald Peraza, Everson Pereira, and Austin Wells. It would give fans at least some hope to the future. And if they play well, great! They left a wide open hole in left field throughout the entire season, but if Everson Pereira is not up in the majors by the end of August, a lot of people will be asking why an outfielder who not only is on the 40-man roster, but has a .900 OPS in Triple-A is not in the majors.
If the Yankees are not going to make any moves to supplement their roster, it’s very hard to sell to fans that a team that is barely above .500 is a good team, let alone a world series contender. The Yankees need to make a change, though Steinbrenner is right when he says it should not cost $300 Million to create a contender, that money needs to be spent effectively. Which the Yankees have not done, notably taking on the remaining $50 Million of Josh Donaldson’s contract. I suspect the Yankees are going to be reliant a lot on their younger prospects to create a new core. Anthony Volpe, Jasson Dominguez, Everson Pereira, and Austin Wells on the position player side, Drew Thorpe, Chase Hampton and Richard Fitts on the pitching side, could be their solutions to supplement a consistent cost effective core around Aaron Judge, Gerrit Cole, and Carlos Rodon. They may take that gamble, and they need to hope it pays off.
BS Reports 
Leave a comment