Yankees GM Brian Cashman spars with WFAN’s Brandon Tierney in interview

Do New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner and general manager Brian Cashman feel an urgency to win? One day after the MLB trade deadline, Cashman addressed those concerns in an interview.

Cashman was a guest on WFAN, talking to hosts Brandon Tierney and Sal Licata. During the interview, Cashman was grilled about his and owner Steinbrenner’s urgency to win.

Tierney questioned the urgency. He cited the long leashes in recent seasons given to now-former Yankees, Joey Gallo and Aaron Hicks as they were struggling. Tierney also noted that this season has a similar feeling.

“If the urgency was always there, why was Gallo given the leash that he was?” Tierney asked. “Why was Hicks given the leash that he was? I know that Hal wants to win. And I know that you want to win. But the highest of urgency to win, I have not seen that the last couple of years quite the way we used to in the past. I haven’t. And I don’t think I’m alone. So that’s why I ask. It doesn’t feel different with Hal this year — at all?”

This is a fair question. While Jazz Chisholm was a nice addition at the deadline, the Yankees still struggle with depth, which has been an issue in recent seasons.

Still, Cashman took issue with Tierney’s take and questioned — albeit jokingly — whether Tierney may be under the influence.

“I guess I’d have to get that drug tester over there and let you pee in a bottle so we can get that sample tested. I’m obviously joking. But at the end of the day, I would provide — look at the roster. Look at the expenditures,” Cashman said.

The general manager then brought up re-signing Aaron Judge after the 2022 season, signing Gerrit Cole after 2019 and trading for Juan Soto before the 2024 season.

“The retention of Aaron Judge. You’ve got an MVP. You’ve got a Cy Young Award winner. You got an MVP candidate imported at big money. You’ve got a retention of an MVP candidate a couple of years back with [DJ] LeMahieu when he was a free agent. These are just examples. All designed — as the payrolls go higher — of improving your chances, of trying to stay in it, trying to fight for it. So I would refute what you’re saying. It doesn’t make any sense.”

To be fair to Cashman, this makes sense. In addition to the moves he mentioned, the Yankees also traded for Giancarlo Stanton immediately after he hit 59 home runs with the Miami Marlins in 2017 en route to an NL MVP.

Have the moves panned out? That depends on the standard. At the time those moves were made, the Yankees had not appeared in a World Series since winning it all in 2009. That remains the case. While that’s not a huge drought by most standards, the Yankees aren’t most franchises. Ultimately, Cashman knows that. And he knows that the most recent moves (or lack thereof) will depend on winning the franchise’s 28th championship.

“When the dust settles, it just comes down to, did we win the World Series or did we not? And if we didn’t win the World Series, then obviously all this stuff comes into play, where you question their hunger. You ask about, why did Gallo get the leash he had or why did Hicks get the leash he had? Well, it depends on what the alternatives were and the ability to import on those alternatives at the time.”

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