Cash-ing in on GM questions
Nearly two weeks after the Yankees’ season ended in disappointment once again, general manager Brian Cashman and manager Aaron Boone will meet the media Friday for a debriefing and a look ahead to a crucial offseason.
While Boone’s status was cleared up last week when Hal Steinbrenner told the Associated Press he will return next season, Cashman spent this year on an expiring contract, though his presence at the press conference at Yankee Stadium seems to indicate he will be back for a 26th season as GM.
After the Yankees failed to reach the World Series for a 12th straight season — and were eliminated by the Astros in the ALCS for the third time in the past six years — Cashman will have plenty of questions to answer.
Here are six that figure to come up in some form:
Are you confident you can resign Aaron Judge?
The question of whether Judge will return to the Yankees will loom over their entire offseason — at least until he signs. They will be hard-pressed to make any other moves until they know whether Judge will be on their payroll for 2023 and beyond. The Yankees tried to lock Judge up before Opening Day, but he turned down their seven-year, $213.5 million offer — figures that Cashman made public in a press conference, which seemed to irk Judge. Now, coming off a 62home-run season, Judge has earned an even bigger payday, which could come in the form of a contract with a $36 million-$40 million average annual value.
about Cashman’s contract?
What
Steinbrenner told the AP last week that no new contract had been agreed to with Cashman, who has been GM since 1998 and has said he would like to be back. Getting swept in the ALCS led to some calls for Cashman’s job, but he was largely expected to be back all along.
What do the Yankees need to do to get past the Astros?
Houston, despite losing the likes of Gerrit Cole, George Springer and Carlos Correa in recent years, continues to be the Yankees’ biggest roadblock. The Astros went 5-2 against the Yankees during the regular season and then knocked them out of the playoffs once again, in such convincing fashion that Cole admitted the Yankees had been beaten in every facet. To put it in Boone’s terms, what more can they do to finally “slay the dragon?”
What went into the decision to bring Boone back as manager?
Boone signed a three-year extension last offseason, but some of his playoff decisions — namely a few of his pitching moves that did not meet the urgency of the situation — called his job status back into question. Boone’s staff underwent a shake-up last year, but will it remain intact for next season?
Will there be any changes in the front office?
Cashman and his lieutenants built a roster that was on pace early this year to challenge the 2001 Mariners for the most wins in a regular season before going 41-42 over the final 83 games. The second half and postseason exposed more Yankees flaws, in both the roster and player development. In addition to trading for players who did not perform as expected — including Joey Gallo, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Josh Donaldson and Frankie Montas — the Yankees have largely lacked homegrown talent outside of Judge. Do they plan to adjust any of their processes, if not change personnel, in these areas?
What is the plan at shortstop for next season?
The Yankees did not pursue a talented free-agent shortstop class last offseason and instead traded for Kiner-Falefa as a stopgap with top prospects Anthony Volpe and Oswald Peraza on the way at the position. But the position continued to be a problem during the season, growing into a bigger one when Kiner-Falefa had to be benched for the final two games of the ALDS because of defensive miscues. Volpe finished the season with 22 games at Triple-A while Peraza showed well for himself as a September call-up. But do the Yankees think he is ready to be their Opening Day shortstop in 2023?