Tuesday, July 9, 2019

Cashman's Casino is about to open

(Thanks, Tony)
Hey, it's nice to see the Death Star, at the season's traditional midway point, with the best record in the American League. 

It would also be nice to think the players who built that lead will be here in September. 

But that probably won't happen. We're about to greet another mid-summer tradition: the gutting of the farm. In this annual human sacrifice, the Yankee front office - aka Brian Cooperstown Cashman - dismantles the current lineup and trades our future for salary-bloated stars of yesteryear. 

Folks, it's going to happen. Period. It doesn't matter what we say or think. It will happen because Cashman cannot handle the tabloid-fueled howls that would flow his way by standing pat, and letting the Yankees grow on their own.

That would mean finding a place for Clint Frazier, probably at the expense of Edwin Encarnacion. Nope. Won't happen. The slumping Encarnacion, jettisoned by Seattle, will get the full months of August and September to find his stroke. If he's still cuddling with .150 in October, they'll bench him for the playoffs. Until then, it doesn't matter how he hits. He's the DH. Deal with it.

Same goes for Giancarlo Stanton, when if he returns. That could be August, unless he cuts off his foot with a pencil sharpener, in which case it'll be September. By then, his bat might be made of Jello. Won't matter. He'll play. He cannot be benched. He cannot be ignored. He's our LF. Deal with it.

What's that? You wonder about JA Happ? Wonder no more. He'll pitch. Every fifth day. Nope, doesn't matter what he does. Every fifth game. Don't bother looking for Deivy, or Jonathan, or Chance, or Nestor Jr.. When they have a bad outing, they're held accountable. They'll vanish off to Scranton faster than you can say "Chris Bootcheck." As for Happ? Won't matter. He will pitch. 

Likewise, so will the guys for which they trade the farm. Last year, they turned out to be the comedy team of Sonny Gray and Lance Lynn. That's the deal with deadline deals: You spend April and May judging players by performance. If they don't hit, they go bye-bye. (Sometimes, even if they do hit, they go bye-bye.) Come July and August, we ditch those lovable, courageous, over-achieving no-names with the all-stars of five years ago. If they don't perform, it doesn't matter. Because we are now entering the Cashman Casino, and nobody must ever be allowed to say or write that he didn't pull all his levers and play all his cards. The Yankees won the first half on youth and hustle. Now comes the second half, where we will seek to win with shiny, new, used parts.

Up top, I invoked the phrase "stand pat." Funny. That used to be the nickname of Pat Gillick, an actual Hall of Fame general manager. In the late 1980s, Gillick built the Toronto Blue Jays into a superpower. Then he left for Baltimore and twice took them to the playoffs. Then it was Seattle, which he took twice to the playoffs (they haven't been since.) Then he won the World Series in Philadelphia. And every July-August, when the Brian Cashmans of the world started reshuffling the decks, Gillick became "Stand Pat." He'd refuse to blow up his farm system - and/or clubhouse - for a quick fix. He always sought to build multiple championships, not just one-offs.

The Yankees have a great team right now, and - yes - Cashman deserves credit for building it. Now, do we really have to turn everything into a craps table? If stars don't hit, will we have the guts to bench them? When opposing teams seek to ransack our future, will we have the guts to say no? 

27 comments:

TheWinWarblist said...

Fuck you Cashman.

Fuck you Hal.

Local Bargain Jerk said...


Hey, TWW, neither 13Bit nor I have heard from you.  Are you still able to go to the IIH outing on Aug 12?

Please let us know via the website signup or by 13Bit's email which is listed on the website.

JM said...

I'm cringing. In fact, I've been cringing since they sent Clint down.

You have to wonder what the fuck Cashman -- and often, Boone -- are thinking. You have guys who have proven they can perform at the major league level, but you trade them or keep them in Scranton so you can use guys who proved they USED to perform at the major league level. It's like Peter Noone--you had a couple of hits 50-some years ago, and you tour on them forever. It doesn't matter that you haven't had a record contract in 50 years, you still get work. We just keep trading for Peter Noone, a nice guy, but come on, already. At best, we trade for Coolio. How about we let the kids play?

I will not forget that the only reason Andujar and Torres were called up and given their chance was because the washed-up, tired veterans that Cashman had acquired couldn't stay off the injured list. It's like Tulo...if, by some crazy chance, he hadn't been hurt yet again, would we have seen Urshela or the Pharoah?

This organization drives me nuts. OK, yes, it wasn't necessarily a long trip in my case, but holy fuckendoodle. If we're out to win games, why do we do such stupid shit?

Rufus T. Firefly said...

I believe Mungo Jerry is also still touring.

Anonymous said...

Interestingly both Sonny (NL All Star!) Grey and Lance(Link)Lynn are having good years. And J. Happ(less), having had a full spring training with the Yankees, flat out stinks.

Maybe the problem isn't who Cashman trades for as much as what happens to them when they get here.

As to the Frazier situation... while you would think that even as a DH he would be worlds better than Edwardo in his current Incarnacion, we need to accept that THEY DON'T LIKE HIM AS A PERSON. Is this fair? I don't know.

But members of a team spend A LOT of time together and for what ever reason THEY DON'T LIKE HIM. If he fielded like Willie Mays maybe it would be worth keeping him despite that THEY DON'T LIKE HIM AS A PERSON.

So the goal is to find a productive DH who they do like and fits the clubhouse culture. As of yet they have not. But that's why Hal keeps trying.

Also, we really do need a starter or two. so yes, trades are a coming. It's a part of the game. There is no way that a rotation of

German (Wins leader! That I have him as our number one should tell you everything you need to know about this rotation)

Tanaka (Who I love)

Paxton (Improving)

Happ. (Oy!)

and CC - Who needs to retire, uh now!)

is winning a championship. I can't say who they should/could get and what they should could give up but they do need to try.

Last, I really hope they keep Estrada. Maybe the reason they brought up that other guy last week was a showcase. He was hitting over .340 at Scranton and just showed he could hit big league pitching albeit in a small statistical sample.

Doug K.

JM said...

Looks like we're battling for a youngish, wildly inconsistent starter. I'm sure Rothschild will straighten him out in no time:

"The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox are among the teams that have been in contact with the New York Mets about a possible trade for right-handed starter Zack Wheeler, SNY reported Monday.

"Although no trade is thought to be close, the Mets are shopping Wheeler aggressively, according to SNY.

"Wheeler, 29, is 6-6 with a 4.69 ERA through 19 starts for the Mets, whose 40-50 record is the second-worst in the National League.

"Wheeler has respectable numbers in other categories, with a 3.65 FIP, a 44.5 percent ground ball rate, 9.83 K/9, 2.57 BB/9 and 1.21 HR/9 over 19 starts.

"The Mets talked to teams about trading Wheeler last year, too, but didn't get an offer they thought was good enough for the right-hander. Wheeler finished last season 12-7 with a 3.31 ERA.

"The major league trading deadline is July 31."

JM said...

Mungo Jerry would be a nice addition to our bullpen, come to think of it.

Anonymous said...

Oh and as long as I'm being contrarian today...

Is it possible that Rob Refsnyeder just isn't very good?

Career: Three Teams...

WAR -0.5
AB 367
H 80
HR 4
BA .218
R 46
RBI 22
SB 8

We can say that the Yankees broke his spirit but there's a mental part of the game too.

So pick your utility guy. I'm going with DJ or Thario, or Gleybar at 2B/SS.

Doug K.

KD said...

John, do you think we'll see Andujar in pinstripes ever again? he seems to be the forgotten man.


called an old redsock fan friend of mine yesterday to talk baseball. he contends this is the Yankees' year. "how he hell does a Luke Voit happen? Cashman is a genius!" nobody will stop the Yankees this year is his contention. he feels this way even after I explained our lack of pitching and how our bats will fall silent in October. he told me that I sounded like the typical, pessimistic redsock fan. how can we be so different and yet fundamentally the same?

13bit said...

We know the drill. BOHICA, as they say - bend over. here it comes again.

WINNIE - MESSAGE TO WINNIE - We did not get any email from you. Please visit the signup link or send an email to motelsign@protonmail.com

If we don't hear from you, we may have to send out the search parties in their pith helmets.

If that doesn't work, it's possible you may be able to reach us via LBJ's FB page or another website I have. Please let me know when you'll be posting again so we can confirm. Over and out.

Local Bargain Jerk said...


how can we be so different and yet fundamentally the same?

KD:

I have wondered the same thing concerning friends of mine who are Red Sox fans.  Here's what I've come up with:

     - Yankees fans and Red Sox fans are all baseball fans.

     - Red Sox fans are whiny assholes.

Makes sense?

JM said...

KD, I guess we never know what tomfoolery Cashman will be up to, but Andujar seems to be too good to give away. That said, this is one hell of an injury if he's out this long. So you never know if he'll be the same player.

Does seem like he's unlikely to be the regular 3B, though. So, given the outfield jam (assuming Stanton will be an outfielder), you have to wonder where he'd play.

It's all kind of a mess.

13bit said...

Winnie, we got your mail. The auto-reply was blocked by some spam blocker, so I re-sent from the Protonmail account. I also cc'ed LBJ, so you may hear from him instead.

Houston, do you hear me? Houston?

Calling all cars, calling all cars.

And it's been a long time since I've said "Fuck you, Brian..." which was my daily refrain all winter.

Rufus T. Firefly said...

Andujar will not be back this year (he never was expected to be post surgery).

https://www.nj.com/yankees/2019/05/doctor-explains-yankees-miguel-andujars-long-tough-recovery-ahead.html

It's a relief to know that Winnie was able to contact the Eagle 5 from planet Vespa.

Anonymous said...

WOULDN'T YOU KNOW IT....

HERE WE ARE AGAIN, WITH OUR ASSES ON THE LINE, WAITING FOR COOP CASHMAN TO RENDER HIS PITCHING WISDOM ON ONE OF HIS "OUTSIDE THE BOX" PITCHING CANDIDATES.

I KEEP SEEING THE NAMES COMING UP AND THEY ARE HORRIFYING.

MARCUS STROMAN.

ZACK WHEELER.

MATTHEW BOYD.

ROBBIE RAY.

NEITHER OF THOSE WILL BE ANY MORE THAN JUST ADDING A #3, OR #4 STARTER FOR US.

.....AND OF COURSE, THE ONE NAME WE NEED TO SEE (AND HAVE), DOESN'T SEEM TO BE ON THE RADAR.

CAN YOU IMAGINE IF WE DON'T GET BUMGARNER, AND HE COMES BACK AND PITCHES AGAINST US IN THE PLAYOFFS OR WORLD SERIES?

WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF "INSANITY"?

DOING THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AND EXPECTING DIFFERENT RESULTS.

CLIFF LEE.

JUSTIN VERLANDER.

MADISON BUMGARNER.

CAN COOP BE THAT DENSE?

I'M AFRAID WE ALL KNOW THE ANSWER.

THIS IS KILLING ME.

Rufus T. Firefly said...

JM,

I would rather Mungo Jerry not be on the team. He'd have to shave those sideburns. That would be a shame.

Carl J. Weitz said...

At least Peter Noone has had a weekly show on Sirius for the last few years. The really washed up ones end up as headliners during the summer or early autumn at annual events or town fairs such as the Norwalk Oyster Festival which is fairly close to where I live. In the past, featured performers have included the Village People, Kansas, Charlie Daniels Band, Joe Walsh, Willie Nelson, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Tito Puente, Cheap Trick, Little Feat, The Monkees, Judy Collins, Up with People and Little Richard.

Between their analytics dept and Rothschild who strictly enforces their findings,
Sonny Gray is a great example as to why so many pitchers fail as a Yankee. The numbers say pitchers should use the slider often as a compliment to the fastball and only then mix in a tertiary off-speed pitch of some kind. Never mind that Sonny can't throw a good slider and had success throwing the fastball/sinker, curve and occasional change up. He was coerced to follow the cookie-cutter dictates of the coaching staff, Sonny's abilities be damned. Hitters don't have this problem. They either buy into what the hitting coach professes or they just ignore him. Pitchers on the Yankees get no such free pass.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Carl Weit, I used to think those guys were very poignant and sad. But then I saw some interview that, I think, Don Wass gave on MTV's mocking show about "one-hit wonders."

Wass, who had a hit with the fun novelty song, "Walk Your Dinosaur" lo these 30 years ago or so, has made a perfectly good living as a music producer, and got a nice chunk of change from that song.

His response, when people call him a "one-hit wonder" was: "That's one more hit than you had!"

If these guys are enjoying themselves, it's great they're still out there performing. It's probably the one thing they wanted to do in their lives, and they can still do it. I'm sure many ballplayers would love the same option.

HoraceClarke66 said...

ALL-CAPS, and Duque, you are spot on. See my report on the guys we are supposedly interested in, in the comments a couple posts ago.

Here's the thing: none of them can even do what Coops wants them to do!

It's one thing to make the decision to trade the farm for a proven star—say a Verlander, or a Scherzer, who may well get you where you want to go. It's another to trade the farm for a mediocre kid...AS COOPS ALMOST INEVITABLY does!

HoraceClarke66 said...

And this IS what drives you nuts about this team—and what SHOULD drive us nuts.

In my rare foray out to Yankee Stadium last month, I was talking with a Mets fan—I know, I know, but I felt sorry for the lad—who was giving me the usual number about how entitled I was as a Yankees fan, and I shouldn't hope but to win once a generation, yadayadayada...

First, such expectations (or the lack thereof) are a big part of what enable the Mets to stay the Mets.

But second, the killer part is that for almost 20 years now—EVER SINCE COOPS TOOK OVER—we are so constantly one role player and/or one pitcher from winning it all. And the mistakes he makes are always the same!

This isn't second-guessing. Most of us wanted Corbin, or Keuchel, or both. Just as most of us did not want Sonny Gray, and wanted Verlander if we gave up the farm for anyone at all.

And Carl Weitz, I agree: NOBODY GETS BETTER WHEN THEY COME TO THE YANKEES.

Yeah, maybe Lance Lynn Lance was never an answer, and I'm suspicious of Sonny's mental make-up considering how much better he pitched on the road. But the heart of the matter—which Coops never, ever looks into, despite is recent promises to do so—is that the Yanks' instructional and training staffs are garbage, unable to improve anyone or prevent a floodtide of injuries.

Correcting that alone would hugely improve this team.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Oh, and Duque?

Let's not forget where Pat Gillick started. That's right: WITH THE YANKEES!!!

This has been a fundamental problem with the Yankees since the start of the Steinbrenner era, nearly half-a-century ago.

Over and over and over again, they have chased off real managerial and front office talent in favor of this Pete Campbell-style, loathsome office panderer, our Mr. Cooperstown Cashman.

A fish rots from the head down. The truth is that HAL would rather have someone flatter and never question him. The truth is that the Knights of the Press Box—who don't really know or care much about the game they watch everyday—would rather flatter Coops in turn for access.

The truth is that Coops is such an egotist that he thinks he can outwit Derek Jeter, then brag about it in public.

He can't—and the JuJu deities will have their revenge.

JM said...

Pet Campbell Cashman. I like the ring of that.

JM said...

pete, I meant.

Mediasavvy said...

I'd much rather see the Yankees pick up a rental pitcher for some Rule 5 Draft eligible prospects that won't make the 40 man. Keep Frazier and the top shelf prospects.

Happy to toss in Encarnacion and cash, if that sweetens the deal. LeMahieu can cover 1st until Voit returns and Mike Ford can have another cup of coffee in NYC.

Everyone's a winner.

Rufus T. Firefly said...

I agree with Mediasavvy's approach. Which means it won't happen.

Had to look up Pete Campbell. I sorta see the resemblance.

Alphonso said...

1. We aren't going to get a pitcher from the Mets, no matter how shitty he is.

2. I recommended, last year, that Andujar be converted to left field. He has fielding issues in the infield which he would not have out there.

3. Stanton is far too slow ( and fragile ) to patrol LF at the stadium, and Frazier is a joke on defense. If defense were the only standard, there are HS teams he would not make.

4. Andujar is now trade bait...assuming that his surgery went well. But no one has heard a thing.

5. I hate this time of year.

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