Cashman will not panic

BOSTON — The championship-or-bust Yankees are only 5-5, but Brian Cashman isn’t pushing the panic button by any means. After all, this isn’t his first rodeo — and there are still 152 games remaining.

“No,” Cashman said during a telephone conversation on Monday morning. “I’ve been around a long time. Obviously nobody likes to lose — especially tight ballgames, extra-inning ballgames — but when it happens you’ve got to turn the page and focus on the next game.”

The Yankees are now headed to Boston to face the Red Sox in a three-game series at Fenway Park, which begins on Tuesday. Feasting on lesser opponents, the Sox have opened up an early 3.5-game lead over the Yanks in the AL East.

Controversy reigned over the rivalry in 2017 due to the Apple Watch Scandal. The Yankees were upset regarding the incident, feeling as though the Sox got off easy with nothing more than a monetary fine. But both teams have new managers now.

“That’s all in the past,” Cashman said.

In any event, Cashman’s first-year manager, Aaron Boone, and his superstar offseason acquisition, Giancarlo Stanton, have both faced plenty of adversity in the early-going. Stanton is coming off a homestand in which he was booed frequently and had a pair of no-hit, five-strikeout games.

“He has gone through stretches like this in his past, and he has a track record you can trust, so you just ride it out until he pops out on the other end,” Cashman said of Stanton. “He’s a pro.”

Boone came under fire for his decision to intentionally walk Josh Donaldson to pitch to Justin Smoak with the bases loaded in Toronto — a move that led to Smoak’s go-ahead grand slam. He has also had to navigate a ton of injuries in his first year at the helm.

“I think he’s doing what needs to be done, which is obviously managing to win games as we reshuffle the roster and try to keep everybody fresh — trying protect guys as we go through some stuff right now which is part of your season,” Cashman said of Boone.