Cashman on Stanton: “We’re in a Good Spot”
The Brian Cashman-Joel Wolfe drama appears to be resolved.
Speaking to the media at Covenant House’s Sleep Out event in Times Square, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman revealed that he reached out to Giancarlo Stanton and his agent, Joel Wolfe, regarding comments he had on the Yankee slugger during GM meetings last week.
According to Cashman, “everything is in a good spot.” Cashman also expressed surprise about how his comments were “twisted and turned” out of context.
“I value Giancarlo Stanton as a player. Without a doubt, he’s one of the big drivers when we do win,” Cashman said.
“He’s one of the few players you bring to New York that hasn’t backed down, that has handled himself in a professional manner through thick and thin.
“He’s one of the few players that, when the money’s on the line – if you look at his postseason numbers, it’s pretty impressive. He’s a gifted, talented player. He’s a feared hitter. We’d love to be able to deploy him at all times.”
Stanton was coming off of the worst season of his career, with a dismal .191/.275/.420 slash line, despite hitting 22 home runs. He also played in just 101 games, missing 61 games due to a hamstring injury.
Injuries, in particular, have piled up over Stanton’s tenure with the Yankees, despite usually being productive when on the field (2023 notwithstanding). This prompted Cashman to predict that Stanton would miss time with injuries yet again in 2024- unwisely saying this in front of the media.
“We try to limit the time he’s down,” Cashman said. “But I'm not gonna tell you he’s gonna play every game next year, because he’s not. He’s going to wind up getting hurt again more likely than not because it seems to be part of his game.”
Although Cashman followed that up by complimenting Stanton’s hitting prowess when healthy, the comment was widely criticized by Yankee fans for alienating a key player, and even more so when Stanton’s agent, Joel Wolfe, responded.
“I read the context of the entire interview. I think it’s a good reminder for all free agents considering signing in New York both foreign and domestic that to play for that team you’ve got to be made of Teflon, both mentally and physically because you can never let your guard down even in the offseason,” Wolfe said.
This response was especially concerning to Yankee fans because Wolfe is also the agent of Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a heavily coveted free agent who the Yankees have kept their eye on throughout the offseason.
Fortunately, Cashman is not concerned that his comments will affect his negotiations with Yamamoto or any of Wolfe’s other clients.
“I feel like things got spun out of control with the coverage a week later,” Cashman said. “I was surprised by how it got twisted and turned and played out. I said what I said, so that’s why I had those conversations. Everything became something that was never intended.
“My comments weren’t intended to poke anything at anybody. I was just answering a question posed at me. But regardless, I got a lot of respect for both Joel but more importantly for our player, Giancarlo Stanton.”
With any issues between Stanton and Wolfe resolved, the Yankees GM can now focus on a busy offseason, which tasks him with improving a team that severely underperformed in 2023 and missed the playoffs with an 82-80 record.
