Rosenthal: Cashman should leave

April 24, 2008 by Benjamin Kabak 24 Comments

Lost in all the hullabaloo over Hank Steinbrenner’s Joba comments was a piece from the tireless Ken Rosenthal. Kenny thinks that Brian Cashman should leave the Yankees after his contract is up this season because Hank Steinbrenner is too aggravating. Besides the fact that Cashman, a 22-year Yankee vet, is fiercely loyal to the Bombers, besides the fact that Hank is just one part of the Hank-and-Hal team leading the Yankees, Rosenthal misses the point. He’s simply validating Steinbrenner’s outbursts while Cashman’s handling of it this week was, in a word, masterful. Despite his flaws as GM, Cashman is and will remain the right man for the job. Hank knows this and so should Rosenthal.

Casper

Who knows what goes on behind the scenes, maybe Cash is at the end of his rope and hates working for/with Hank… But judging from the information publically available, it doesn’t seem like Cash has a big problem with the way the organization is being run. This “Cashman bristles under Steinbrenner control” thing seems media-created, at least given the information available to us. Personally, I think Cash seems more comfortable in his role, at least publically, than he ever has. We’ve gone from Cash dealing with the “Tampa contingent,” daily questions about his status and Torre’s status, fallout from big-ticket FA signings, etc… to an atmosphere in which he seems to be in control and his plan seems to have been implemented. I like Rosenthal, but this seems like a strange conclusion for him to have come to. Short memory.
- Casper
  
  To put it more succinctly… Cashman’s situation seems more comfortable now than it has ever been during his tenure, and he stuck around through much worse times for him. Rosenthal seems to be forgetting/disregarding this. Why leave when he’s seemingly won his battles within the organization?
  - http://www.riveraveblues.com Ben K.
    
    That is exactly why I think this piece from Rosenthal is about out of left field.
    - TurnTwo
      
      Its always newsworthy for Rosenthal, or Olney, or Stark to come out with some new inside the yankees organization scoop or speculation.
      
      fwiw, i’m not going to read anything into the relationships in the FO between Cashman and crew and the Steinbrenners until he either actually leaves, or he signs a new contract. otherwise, who the hell really knows what is goin on other than Cashman himself?
    - rbizzler
      
      I agree Ben, it does seem to come from left field. Until you consider the large amount of Hank hate that has been brewing since the offseason. The media seems to have some problem with Hank (although they should love his loquaciousness), and several of them (Stark and Tim Brown @ yahoo) have taken his ‘only an idiot’ comment personally.
      
      The media loves to predict the downfall of the Yankees and they would thoroughly enjoy it if Hank started acting irrationally. This piece by Rosenthal is just another shot at Hank, plain and simple.
andrew33

latroy hawkins pitched well last year (1.22 whip), they signed him to a 1 year dal (a nice move by cashman), over the course of the year he will probably be better then farnsworth, he isnt that expensive

lets not panic on him, he isnt blowing things up, although yes i agree it would of been nice to give mariano the night off
edwar ramirez was god awful last year, yes hes a nice story and hes got a fantastic change up but come on – he had as many 1-2-3 innings as he did blw ups

lets give latroy another month before we trade him for another average reliever – now if he brings back a decent first basemen who can get fatso giambi planted on the bench or used as an occasional dh – i’m all for it
Alan

I get the feeling that Hank is just the ‘face’ of Yankee management, with Hal and Cashman handling the bulk of the actual work. If you’ll notice, Hank was the one that wanted Santana and wanted Joba in the rotation. Neither of those things has happened. So while all of the attention is focused on blustery Hank, Hal and Brian can work quietly behind the scenes. That’s my theory, at least.
Tripp

“besides the fact that Hank is just one part of the Hank-and-Hal team leading the Yankees, Rosenthal misses the point.”

No, this is where all sports writers miss the point. Especially, Foxsports.com, SI.com, and ESPN.com.

They think Hank is the man and he’s not. They always leave out Hal and the other Steinbrenners.
E-ROC

Hopefully, CashMoney stays and gets an extension.

Skip Bayless is an idiot. Said Cano looks like a catcher because he eats candy. Bayless was discussing Girardi’s banning of candy in the clubhouse. No shock that this goon is on ESPN.

LOL @ Steve Lombardi suggesting the Yanks should hire Krivsky as an assistant to Cashman. Hate Cashman much Lombardi??!!

GO YANKS!
- swo
  
  It’s sad that those are the kind of people that ESPN hire as their analysts. A moron like him gets plenty of air time, while a guy like Keith Law, who actually has some insightful things to say, is lucky to get a 2-minute guest appearance on Sportscenter. It’s a shame.
  
  I’m also confused as to why all these writers are making such a big deal out of the candy thing. Yeah, it’s funny, but the candy was banned from the clubhouse in the beginning of the season. Why is it all over the sports world more than 3 weeks after the fact?
  
  Strange how stories go unnoticed at one time but stick another time. I’ll never understand the way the media works.
bkight13

Brian should quit his multi-million dollar salaried job as GM of the New York Yankees because Hank likes to speak out at times. They would have to pry that job out of my cold dead hands.
- Tripp
  
  Seriously. The guy is given a 200 million dollar budget every year and he’s trying to avoid using all that money. Why would he just quit?
ceciguante

who knows who is calling the shots behind the scenes right now? i think it’s a complete mystery. when cashman, hank and hal discuss a transaction, who really decides? i have a feeling they’re not being straight with the media on this, which is good. let rosenthal write his schwag column.

as for judging cashman, if there is any reason he should leave it’s not his relationship w/ hank (which appears calmer than it was with george at times), it’s that he continually fails to assemble top pitching staffs when he has by far the biggest budget in the league. this team should, first and foremost, be outpitching everyone year after year. for too long, it hasn’t.
Steve S

I dont think this is so out of left field. And honestly Cashman may need to go at the end of this year. i wouldnt have a problem Darren Oppenheimer having a shot. Cashman has been good but he bears responsibility for the product he puts on the field and the contracts he has preverbially signed. Just like it was time for Torre to go it may be time for Cashman to go if he has issues with the new Steinbrenners method. I think he is off, Cashman likes being beleaguered otherwise he would have left a long time ago.

And i also dont get these sports writers who vilify an owner who takes an active part in his team. Until its proven to be an actual detriment (Peter Angelos), then why complain. I know baseball is complex but why arent owners entitled to their opinion? Who are these proverbial “baseball people” I am always hearing about? I mean no offense why are they so qualified and the guy who signs the paychecks isnt? I think the saber stuff and new Ivy League GM have established that you dont need to be a former player or scout in order to succesfully run a team. And no offense the concepts that Bill James is setting forth arent exactly advanced physics. Why is it so wrong for someone who has been involved in the game for thirty plus years and has a good business track record to be involved in all the operations of a MLB team.
- RichYF
  
  Isn’t it Damon Oppenheimer?
  - zack
    
    Nevermind the point that if Oppenheimer is GM, that means he isn’t as focused on doing what he does best and loves to do, according to him, which is the draft. If he moves up, someone else has to take that spot and who knows what happens.
    
    But the big thing is this: Cashman has stuck around for over ten years now and has handled NY just fine. If HE suddenly can’t take it anymore, do you honestly think some other GM could just step in an handle Hank, if we are to believe he is that bad?
  - Steve S
    
    sorry damon oppenheimer, jesus
    - Steve S
      
      I dont believe he is that bad and I dont necessarily think he need handling. And Im not even saying Cashman should go but if he does I could think of worse things. I dont understand why Oppenhimer cant focus on the draft if he is GM. I hope Cashman is concentrating on it to an extent at this point.
MD

working for Hank gives Cash a lot more juice than working for George…..and since when did we expect the owner of the Yanks to not be opinionated…..and by the way, George’s opinions were’nt always on target either…..Hank is not as demeaning in his outbursts….I imagine Cash understands the big picture better than the scribes trying to paint this as a crisis………..who would you rather work for, Hank or George???? and who out there has a boss who isn’t a pain in the ass sometimes…..it is in the job description, check it out…..
- rbizzler
  
  I agree MD, and contrary to the media’s portrayal, when has Hank actually ordered something to be done? Hank/Hal stand in contrast to their father, who ordered all sorts of terrible baseball decisions.
sundstrom

i love it that people don’t realize that cashman, trost & levine run the team and hank and hal are happy to let them do it.

hank is playing the role that is suitable.
RustyJohn

Yes, I could see how having Hank speak out would immediately make Cash bolt from the Yankees to greener pastures (like the Pirates). One, Hank’s power is nowhere near absolute and if Cash can deal with Papa Boss for all these years, Hank is nothing. It is like having Caligula for a boss and then working for Jimmy Carter.

Two, does Rosenthal even track the team? Who will replace Joba in the pen? Well it won’t be Hawkins or Farnsworth, but there are a couple of guys named Bruney and Ohllie in the pen who are capable as well as 2 or 3 guys in AAA who would be just fine- this belief that anything short of The Nasty Boys in the pen is an abject failure is perplexing and we get back to the same old argument of Joba in the pen vs. starting which is really a stupid argument on so many levels.

This team will do just swell if two of our starters can make it through 4 innings- is there an official “Call up Rasner” clock if kennedy doesn’t get his shit straight?

When Rosenthal was exclusively with the SPorting News his reporting seemed much better, but in recent years he is sliding into Lupica territory- call it short man’s syndrome.
mustang

“Despite his flaws as GM, Cashman is and will remain the right man for the job.”
I agree again.
Ok, this has to stop how can we have any fun here if we start agree on everything. LOL
- mustang
  
  Agreeing. Sorry grammar guy wherever you’re at.