The New York Yankees’ are tracing back their steps to identify the root cause of a disastrous 2023. With an 82-80 record and a negative run differential, the Yankees had their poorest season in recent memory. This was a rather disappointing result for a club that qualified for the Championship Series the previous season. Now, how does one know who’s to blame?
Starting with the players, some performed well, some did not, and some sustained injuries. Moving to the Manager, the leader of the clubhouse and the dugout, could have executed some plans better. But what about the primary strategists and decision makers, Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman? Well, a recent revelation about recent Bombers’ struggles with the man on top is shocking.
Brian Cashman At the Top Management Is On the Radar
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Seems like an enormous chunk of the blame falls on the shoulders of the General Manager Brian Cashman as per Pinstripe Alley. A couple of initial red flags from the much-maligned Cashman include failing to commence the season with depth and leaving too many loose ends for the regulars to speculate. But what was monumental for this school of thought is a recent post that surfaced on Instagram by letsgoyanks.
In the post, Kevin Kernan was quoted, “Gentle reminder to everyone. It wasn’t the Yankees who didn’t want Jordan Mont Gomery or refused to talk to Bryce Harper or who let Rob Thomson leave after 27 years: It was Brian Cashman”. What does this say about the head of the mega-franchise?
While there are speculations of the team trying to get back Jordan Montgomery, what are the likes of him agreeing to it? There was a time when Cashman knew his talent yet allegedly decided to trade him off. Now the Yankees witness other teams reap the fruits of this poor choice. Bryce Harper who was a free agent a few years ago, was chalked off the list of the Yankees; again, credit goes to Cashman. The team undervalued the tenured players as well.
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The Bronx has usually felt the obligation to owe failing veterans a chance at success. Considering that MLB values playing time and roles along with performance, it was okay to give players a longer look. But the Yanks had too many underperforming hitters at one point, and part of it was Cashman’s fault as per the same source. Additionally, in terms of offense, there was quite a tough time that New York had in that arena.
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2023’s Offensive Performance Calls for Action For A Positive 2024
While it was quite evident that offense was one of the major areas of improvement, there wasn’t much action taken on this front. Quite simply put, the stats show the Yankees finished 25th in runs scoring 673, and 29th in batting average with a .227. Along with that, they stood 22nd in slugging percentage of .397. Hopefully, 2024 will witness a better offense for the Yanks. That said, there is another problem at hand that is glaring down at the Yankees.
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It is not a secret that the roster needs a revamp. Be it player positioning or acquiring new free agents, this is a hard but important one to crack. While the organization has potential, it would be wise to analyze the mistakes of 2023 to come back with a solid 2024. The MLB world waits in anticipation.
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