Yankees' GM Brian Cashman Doesn't Rule Out Selling at Trade Deadline
NEW YORK — With the Trade Deadline looming, and the Yankees trending in the wrong direction, could New York be sellers this summer?
It seems like an impossible proposition, but general manager Brian Cashman isn't ruling it out.
Addressing the media at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday afternoon, before the Yankees took the field against the Angels in search of their first win in almost a week, Cashman was asked if there's a chance this team could be a seller at the Deadline next month.
"If we fall like a stone, obviously then you have to regroup and reassess," Cashman said. "Obviously we're trying to fix what we've got, self-correct what we have and add to it if we can, but if it's unworthy at some point, obviously then you have to have different conversations."
The fact of the matter is that Cashman's club is in danger of sliding in the standings to the point of no return. While the GM didn't specify exactly what would constitute "falling like a stone," it's an option that he's been forced to at least consider after the way this team has struggled through the first three months of the season.
"I don't think we're at that point yet, but I understand why you asked the question because we've played to that level right now," Cashman added.
New York is 7.5 games back in the American League East entering play on Tuesday, six games back of a Wild Card spot. They're two games above .500, a fourth-place team with glaring issues on both sides of the ball.
In other words, as Cashman put it, the Yankees "suck right now."
The general manager made it clear that while the trade market still hasn't picked up any momentum, he's actively seeking ways to make this roster better. If conversations turn into negotiations, and Cashman has an opportunity to pull the trigger on a deal that'll provide manager Aaron Boone with a better on-field product, he won't hesitate.
Until then, self-correction is paramount. With over three full months remaining in the regular season, the Yankees are still very much in the race for a playoff spot.
It's the sudden steps back, like this present four-game skid, that can be debilitating to New York's pursuit of contention.
"Again, a week ago, we were three and a half games out and starting to believe that we're gonna go into Boston and take care of business," Cashman said. "Instead we got our lunch handed to us. So it's been frustrating. Now we're pushed back again and we're gonna have to climb back out of it, which we can and we're certainly more than capable of and there's enough time for it.
"At some point, if it's not happening and it gets worse, than you're certainly open-minded to take a different attack. But that's not the mindset for us at all right now. The mindset is fixing what's broken. Somehow, some way and with the personnel we have, if I can add to it, we'll try to."
MORE:
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- Yankees Fall Flat Once Again With 'Season on the Line'
- The Time For the Yankees to Make a Trade Is Now
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