Bernie-Cashman feud heats up
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- January
- 26
Drove over to the Greentree Country Club in New Rochelle tonight to see Bernie Williams, who was helping raise money for Hillside Food Outreach.
The Journal News planned to cover the event anyway. But after hearing what Brian Cashman said about Williams on Friday night, I wanted to give Williams a chance to respond.
Speaking at William Paterson University in New Jersey at an event with Theo Epstein, Cashman said Williams spent too much time with his music career “and that took away from his play†on the field.
Cashman said Williams had a “terrible season†in 2005 and that former manager Joe Torre was wrong to play Williams as often as he did in 2006 because better players were available.
Only two writers were there tonight. Told of Cashman’s comments, Williams first said he didn’t want to resond. But then he paused and took a deep breath.
“I don’t think he has any basis to say anything like that,†he said. “Let me put it this way: Questioning a person’s commitment to the team is a very serious accusation, at least in my book.â€
I asked whether music was a distraction during the final seasons of his career. “Everybody’s entitled to their opinion,†he said. “I haven’t really talked to (Cashman) about what he said. But I want to.â€
Williams did not attend any Yankee games last season despite several invitations from Joe Torre. He has yet to officially retire, putting the Yankees in an awkward spot in terms of offering him some sort of role.
The Yankees were probably right not to offer Williams a guaranteed contract for the 2007 season. And Williams probably had every reason to feel insulted. It’s a shame it has come to this. Hopefully the two sides can put aside their differences and Williams can be honored at Yankee Stadium before it closes.
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on Saturday, January 26th, 2008 at 8:30 pm by Peter Abraham.
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Peter Abraham
The last thing I want to see is a beloved Yankee bear a grudge against his former team, a la so many of the others.
I really hope they get this sorted out, and soon.
Now things seeme to make some sense as to Bernie’s vanishing act.
Bernie’s always been a sensitive guy. It’s really no wonder why he’s been keeping himself at arms length. I doubt this is the first time he’s heard that.
i believe cash when he speaks. i really like bernie but i think cash doesnt trash people in press normally. odd that he did this time but i think hes telling the truth.
and sportswriters, are not helping the situation.
Whatever.. Bernie has some nerve.. don’t expect fans to be on his side after he refused to throw out a first pitch in the ALDS last year and has not come back to the stadium since his retirement.. if you’re upset with the Yankees.. fine.. but don’t take it out on the fans who loved and supported you for 18 years. Shame on you Bernie Williams.
Agree with Cashman …I remember the time when Bernie was in the batters circle tuning his guitar during a game …tisk tisk tisk
Pete,
Bernie is my all-time favorite Yankee. And I’m also a huge Torre fan. The Yankees of that era are “my guys,” just like every fan has a specific team or group of players that they associate themselves with.
Cashman should know better. I mean, seriously. Maybe he’s frustrated about what has transpired over the winter and his reduction of influence. But his comments were not necessary.
He’s not going to win the PR battle with Williams.
Cashman is out of line here. He’s right about Bernie’s lack of focus towards baseball, but this wasn’t the time or the place to air out his dirty laundry. Real poor judgement by Cashman.
Cashman doesn’t bash players very often and I believe him. Bernie should be a shame.
If something like this gets in the way of Bernie getting all of the love he deserves from fans and management…count me out as a Cashman supporter….Come on Cashhhhhhh….That ain’t cool
Look, Bernie was a great Yankee. But, like many players he didn’t like it when he was told his time was up. Who can blame him? That said Cashman’s comments weren’t accurate, at least with regard to Bernie taking playing time way from others. Bernie in 2006 actually pulled the team out of a jam by playing pretty well in the second half of the season. Who else was Torre supposed to play? Other than Melky, the Yankees minor league system hasn’t exactly been overflowing with ML ready position players.
I don’t know about him not being in shape or his music being a distraction. But he does have a legit beef re the playing time comment.
You think these guys could have worked this out behind closed doors like professionals??
“If something like this gets in the way of Bernie getting all of the love he deserves from fans and management”
but what if it is true about coming into camp out of shape?
and i am not saying it IS true.
but if it is, why should he get “all the love”? if it is true, he should be held accountable.
i disliked how cashman treated bernie williams last winter, and i dislike what he’s said this winter. i don’t know what his problem is with bernie. from hanging with theo to bashing bernie , cashman may be forgetting what team he works for.
either that or he shouldn’t drink at functions before he talks to reporters.
A totally classless and uncalled for remark by Cashman. It’s pretty apparent that Cashman didn’t stand behind Torre as others assumed he did by the remarks. Williams never came to camp out of shape. He had shoulder and leg injuries for two years, byt, he wasn’t out of shape. He didn’t get regular playing time until Sheffield and Matsui went down. Jeter had better watch his back. He’s next.
Randy, it’s almost Billy Martinesque with Cashman…like he’s trying to get fired or trying to see just how far he can push things and get away with it. He’ll lose that fight.
I’m not a fan of trying to stir the pot on this one.
Bernie’s not a current player on the team, but he is a treasured part of the 90s dynasty, which puts the entire thing in an incredibly awkward situation.
Good for Bernie that he stuck up for himself in some sort of way. Bernie has too much respect for himself and his teammates to not put every bit of himself into the game like he did for his entire career.
Whether that’s something Cash believes or not, it’s something he should have kept to himself or have the cajones to bring it up personally with Bernie. It seems like Cash is really trying to impress his new boyfriend in Boston lately.
“i disliked how cashman treated bernie williams last winter, and i dislike what he’s said this winter. i don’t know what his problem is with bernie”
randy, i have vivid memories of you last spring ripping Damon, Abreu and others for coming into camp “out of shape”. it was one of your biggest issues with the team, and you are the biggest proponent of proper conditioning on this blog.
IF this is true (again, we don’t know), would you feel differently about how Cashman “treated Bernie” last spring?
you were so critical of Johnny Damon for being out of shape, but if Bernie came to camp out of shape, why should Cashman have given him a contract last winter??
these are ALL hypotheticals, because NO ONE here knows the truth, but i think it’s an interesting question.
A little bit of sensationalism in the headline of this post, no?
I don’t really see that Bernie did anything to HEAT UP the feud. If anything, he defused the situation and downplayed things. Said he wants to talk to Cashman because it was a pretty serious accusation.
In any case, I hope everyone works out the differences. Bernie was a bit of a baby last year and maybe the Yankees were a little harsh in their cutting ties with him. Time for everyone to kiss and make up and just get the monument out in left field.
Really disappointed in Cashman for making those comments.
Looks like Boston is up to more classless mind games.
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/general/view.bg?articleid=1068889&srvc=home&position=0
greenberet 7-
i agree it’s very odd behavior. i thought last winter there was a negative edge to cashman’s attitude toward williams that went beyond just doing what he thought was best for the team. i couldn’t put it in words but it totally rubbed me the wrong way. now with an uncalled for, unprovoked, and pointless attack on bernie , that feeling is back. if i was able to use the language i’d like on the blog , i’d say what i think of cashman in a much more direct way.
for the record, Cashman also said similar things about Damon and Abreu. he said they struggled in the beginning of last season b/c they came into camp out of shape.
What, in your opinion, did Cashman say that wasn’t true?
“He didn’t get regular playing time until Sheffield and Matsui went down. ”
not true. Torre played Bernie in every single game before Sheffield got hurt, and then in every single game before Matsui got hurt:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/pi/gl.cgi?n1=willibe02&t=b&year=2006
“Torre played Bernie in every single game before Sheffield got hurt”
i take this back. he had 3 days off in that time frame.
still, it was 19 out of 22 games before sheffield got hurt, and 28 out of 32 games before matsui got hurt.
hmmm-
i could understand cashman being upset about players not showing up in shape, but that’s a conversation between cashman and the player. if cashman was upset about williams for not showing up in 2006 in shape ,there are face to face ways to take care of it at the time. there’s no excuse for cashman to bring it up now,even if it was true two years ago.
to take a shot at someone like bernie who quietly accepted his fate is pretty weak. there was no bashing of cashman or anyone on the yankees from williams. it must have taken a lot of self control and character for williams to maintain his silence.
the rational thing to do is probably wait for cashman’s response to the backlash before judging cashman any further. cashman does have to issue an apology. if he does, fine. if he doesn’t , that’s another story.
Pete says: “The Yankees were probably right not to offer Williams a guaranteed contract for the 2007 season. And Williams probably had every reason to feel insulted. It’s a shame it has come to this. Hopefully the two sides can put aside their differences and Williams can be honored at Yankee Stadium before it closes.”
And I agree.
But lets just change a few words (and pull off a scab from a recent cut):
The Yankees were probably right not to offer Torre a guaranteed contract for more than one season. And Torre probably had every reason to feel insulted. It’s a shame it has come to this. Hopefully the two sides can put aside their differences and Torre can be honored at the new Yankee Stadium when he retires.
Can you agree with that Pete?
It’s comments like the ones he made last night about Bernie that make Brian Cashman look like a petty, silly little jackass…and I’m usually a Brian Cashman fan.
Cashman was out of line. His comment was indiscreet, unseemly, and unwarranted. Fortunately, he doesn’t make that mistake often.
I’m pleased to see Bernie defend himself however.
Just once I’d love to hear the Yankee front-office accept blame for the Yankees failures the last four years, just once to acknowledge one of the multitude of abjectly improvident personnel decisions they made. Just once, I’d love to hear, “Yes, we ignored our farm system. Yes, since Stanton-Nelson-Mendoza, we’ve yet to acquire competent relievers for our bullpen. Yes, we wasted untold millions on inept and fecklees starting pitching.”
Just once I’d love to hear them take responsibility instead of finding excuses to scapegoat Joe Torre or to blame Bernie Williams or some other player currently on the roster.
It is however amusing to read the contortions to which Cashman’s apologists will undergo to defend the indefensible, and to rationalize whatever the man says or does, no matter how imprudent or misguided.
I’m beginning to think the reason Cashman thought it better to have four 1Bs on his 2007 (including All-Star Josh Phelps) instead of a 5th outfielder, named Bernie Williams, was because he had to allocate the money to all the apologists, acolytes, and anoymous posters he keeps on the payroll.
What, in your opinion, did Cashman say that wasn’t true?
not true. Torre played Bernie in every single game before Sheffield got hurt, and then in every single game before Matsui got hurt:
——————————————
Good lines, I think you both are right. By the way, Bernie started 131 games in 06.; BA 281, OBP 332. 27/08
Or Matt, because Bernie Williams was a below average player with zero upside whatsoever and there was the very real chance that Torre would still send him out there every day
True or not, Cashman should have not said it. Two years later it was just not necessary only petty.
Even if what Cashman said was true, it wasn’t necessary, it accomplished nothing positive and it was out of character for him.
He was the DH in 06, for god sakes, in the games he started before Sheff’s injuries. What next great Yankee legend did Bernie deprive of at-bats then? Miguel Cairo?
Playing Bernie wasn’t a better option than starting Philips at 1B and DHing Giambi? Come on.
Dave Pinto of Baseball Musings has this take which I agree with, and I will add the name of Scott Proctor to what he stated:
Cashman got rid of Bernie rather than telling Joe how to manage his squad. That strikes me as the right thing to do as a GM. The manager is supposed to control the action on the field. If he’s doing the wrong thing, either fire the manager or take away the player. (I think you saw the same thing with Miguel Cairo last season.)
Truth is, as much as I love Bernie, he was the last in and first out all the time. He showed up later than he should have for Game 6 of the 2001 World Series and got chewed out for it.
Maybe Cashman shouldn’t have said what he did publicly, but his statements are accurate. An OPS+ equal to the league average is a 100. Bernie’s 2005 was terrible. He had an 85. His 2006 OPS+ was a 96. Had he been on the team in 2007 (and had Torre played him far more often than he should have, which Torre would have done), it’s quite conceivable that Bernie’s OPS+ would have dropped back off to the 70 to 80 range.
I like Cashman and have long been a fan of his. But there is absolutely no reason for him to have made the statement. Personally, I don’t believe it, but even if he felt that way,, Bernie is not on the team now. There is no reason to stir the pot.
IMO Bernie could have had a role on the team last year, but a decision was made and it’s over. Cashman should have let it be.
As a fan, he used up almost all the goodwill equity he had with me with his treatment of Bernie last year. Totally on bernie’s side.
i read this blog a little and hmmm is right on… anyone that wanted bernie was either a girl, an old man, or someone that jsut doesnt like cashman. bernie williams wouldnt run out an infield dribbler if his life depended on it. he refused to learn how to play corner OF to help the team, and he also held the team hostage by threatening to play for the sox. yeah a true yankee…that learned it all from the kc jones of baseball, joe torre. joe torre who didnt want to be woken up to go out and speak to his ROOKIE pitcher in a palyoff game who was being attacked by bugs! was there ever a worse manager than joe torre the last 7 years, can any true yankee fan not be ecstatic this bum will not be here next year? anyone is better than torre. sorry, but this defense of bernie is for the birds..recall how he was such a team player that he didnt even show up for spring training last year? and as for the guy who said “watch out, jeter’s next..” good, jeter is way overated. is such a team guy that he kept his position over the greatest SS the game has ever seen, defended a known steriud abuser while not defending arod over some petty bs, and should have offered to girardi to learn how to play 1B because he couldnt move to his left in time to shut the closet door that its so painfully obvious he lives in. ps we havent won a WS since he became the captain.
Besides, where the heck was Bernie to play? You already had Melky in CF and Abreu in RF, Matsui and Damon switching off between LF and DH and you didn’t know what to do with Giambi, since you didn’t want him in the field. Had Torre had Bernie and used him properly, Bernie would have just rotted on the bench anyway.
So Pete
What did you ask Paulie?
Bernie Williams DID have an awful season in 2005, with a hideous OPS+ of 85 (average is 100), and a dismal 56 runs created. He scored 53 runs in 546 plate appearances. A line-up of 9 Bernies that year would have scored but 3.8 runs per game (RC/G). Ouch.
Was this due to an insufficient focus on baseball? I don’t know. If Cashman thinks so, he probably has reason for that judgment. But airing this now, when fans want Bernie to return for the Stadium to be honored before it’s demolished is surprisingly ill-timed.
IMO, this has nothing to do with whether or not Bernie deserved to be on the team. It has to do with why Cash felt any need at all to put Bernie down in front of a room of fans by questioning his focus on the game and his commitment to the team.
I doubt Jeter is next because apparently Cashman doesn’t have the nerve to speak man-to-man to an active actual player, unless of course, he lets Girardi do it.
I tend to agree with Cashman but I don’t think it was right for him to say that publicly. Bernie was a great player for us and we would not have had the success we did without him. When Bernie was Bernie, he was a damn good ballplayer.
“ps we havent won a WS since he became the captain.”
“we”? that’s a good one. so what position do you play. left couch?
he felt the need because bernie williams completely disrespected cashman as a person and your employer last spring when he REFUSED to answer phone calls even. can you imagine not taking a phone call from your boss? or returning the call? even out of common courtesy? esp. when cashman is trying to put togeter a team? and why would every one here that has ever been employed call back someone out of courtesy…because they want to be given courstesy in the future. bernie thought he was bigger than the team. he wasn and isnt. he deserves zero respect as a professional because he was as unproffesional as it gets. by the way, silence doesnt equal class. although he certainly wasnt quiet when he threatened to go to the sox…
something else i notice here “randy l” is that whenever someone makes a point agianst your arguement you begin a personal attack on them but conveniently ognore the point. and i highly doubt that you are running a treadmill while you post here 24/7…oh yeah, im sure you never have referred to the yankees as “we” in all your millions of unabomber like rants here.
MattNC
From what I recall, Bernie decided to alter his approach after the 2005 season, since whatever he was doing wasn’t working. He may have been a bit out of shape, but at the time, I think it was thought that he needed to tweak how he prepared since he was getting older. Whatever happened, he had a very good 2006 for the role he played.
Pete-
Was Paul O’Neill a no show??
Cashman was way out of line. Is there any way to find out if Cashman was asked a specific question about Bernie and his work ethic? It may explain why Cashman buried him like that. Even if there was a leading question, Cashman could’ve answered it more diplomatically. Way out of line on this one.
This is all on Bernie. He is a legend in this town and nothing Cashman says changes it. All Bernie has to do is learn to bow out gracefully and continue to be the legend he is. He made a ton of money and did not earn it at the end. Sorry, I have no sympathy for guys getting $100 million contracts and holding grudges. Cashman is covering the fans back, putting the best team on the field. Bernie stunk at the end, Torre wanted to continue to play Bernie and they are both gone. Thanks Cash.
Cashman really comes across like a jerk. There’s no reason he had to publicly smear Bernie like that. No reason.
If he felt disrespected, it’s something he should have taken up personally with Bernie, not with a room full of strangers and Boston’s GM.
Cash is wa) out of line here.
finally, a voice of reason. bernie made manny ramirez look like charlie hustle most times he hit a grounder. i cant count the times he jogged/walked down the line and he totally got a pass from the media and torre. meanwhile torre would throw a player he didnt like (melky, arod, etc.) under the bus in a heartbeat. about two of the most unprofessional guys you wuill find who spent more time cultivating their image (esp. in torres case) as a classy guy than on actually devising strategies on winning. im so excited to not have torre in the dugout this year and to watch the dodgers deal with his sleeping but and a sub 500 record.
It’s really hard to tell how bad this is since we didn’t hear the tone of the comments.
Cashman could have just said that Bernie’s music adversely effected his 2005 season, and not meant it as a work ethic question, just as a fact that happened. It’s hard to tell with just quick quote snippets.
Pete,
Do you have audio or a transcript of the whole conversation?
an example of classy bernie with his classy agent.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D07E5D81739F936A15752C1A96E958260
Bernie Williams last night gave Yankees officials perhaps a last chance to match a seven-year offer worth about $90 million from the Boston Red Sox, and unless the Yankees increase their five-year, $60 million pitch, Williams appears poised to join the Red Sox.
In a face-to-face meeting in Tampa, Fla., Williams and his agent, Scott Boras, met with the Yankees’ principal owner, George Steinbrenner. Baseball officials believe Williams could complete the deal today, and if so, it would represent the greatest defection by any Yankee player to Boston in the history of the two rival franchises.
Williams, who met with Boston officials Sunday and Monday and was said to have an instant liking for Red Sox Manager Jimy Williams, would change the dynamics of an organization that has relied on slow-footed power hitters for much of its frustrating history.
“Just once, I’d love to hear, “Yes, we ignored our farm system. Yes, since Stanton-Nelson-Mendoza, we’ve yet to acquire competent relievers for our bullpen. Yes, we wasted untold millions on inept and fecklees starting pitching.†”
it’s not quite in those words, but i hear Cashman say things like this all the time.
Cashman is constantly bemoaning the fact that the team got away from their farm system for several years, wasted their draft picks, and have wasted money on free agent pitchers. it is why he is constantly talking about building pitching from within.
it was a point he repeated last night to much applause. in fact, i think his comments were very well received by yankee fans last night, and the comments about Bernie are being lifted out of their context.
that doesn’t mean he wasn’t fairly blunt on this topic, he was. and it was somewhat uncharacteristic.
but i would imagine Cashman has taken a TON of personal abuse from the Mike Francessa’s of the world for not bringing Bernie back this year.
“Playing Bernie wasn’t a better option than starting Philips at 1B and DHing Giambi? Come on.”
it all goes back to Kenny Lofton in 2004. Cashman signed Lofton to play CF. Bernie was to be the DH. the FO was very clear about this point. Torre ignored that and kept running Bernie out in CF, even though his defense had become a disaster.
exactly. and when torre whined about the joba rules in public to the media against cashman’s explicit request, where was randy l then moaning about keeping things in-house?
it got to the point where cashman had to sign players aaron guile to force torre to play melky even though he couldnt stand him.
it was all torre could do to try and get arod to leave the yanks by not defending him in the detroit series and throwing him under the bus to SI. joe torre was as unproffesional as it gets and more and more will come out as time moves on. i believe arod would have left if torre came back no doubt. there was no jimmy chitwood moment there.
If this is about Torre using Bernie over Lofton or using Bernie at all, then Cashman should have a beef with Torre, not Bernie.
http://slidingintohome.blogspot.com/2008/01/heres-three-more-pics-that-i-found.html
Just found three more pics… enjoy
BB – Paul was there.
If this is about Torre using Bernie over Lofton or using Bernie at all, then Cashman should have a beef with Torre, not Bernie.
Mr. G, my thoughts exactly. Bernie didn’t force himself into the line-up and never publically said anything all the years the Yankees tried phasing him out.
I really don’t understand why Cashman would do this. Like others have said it makes no sense to bring this up in a room full of people, and yes Cash was out of line.
“anyone that wanted bernie was either a girl, an old man, or someone that jsut doesnt like cashman.”
“i highly doubt that you are running a treadmill while you post here 24/7″
“oh yeah, im sure you never have referred to the yankees as “we†in all your millions of unabomber like rants here.”
that first statement is sexist, agist, and illogical. besides that, it’s fine.
as, for the second, why run on a treadmill when there are so may great roads along the ocean here, and i rarely miss throwing everyday. throwing helps spelling by the way. it’s a sequential activity that helps order the verbal part of the brain.
you got me on the third one. i do say “we” sometimes, but what part of what you were saying made you a yankee fan? you a have a right to your opinion, but i think it’s way out of line on bernie williams.
EYT
What does Bernie negotiating a contract have to do with class? He wanted to stay in NY and negotiated a contract to do that. Not jumping on a first offer doesn’t make him unclassy in my book, it makes him a smart businessman.
“If this is about Torre using Bernie over Lofton or using Bernie at all, then Cashman should have a beef with Torre, not Bernie.”
who said he has a beef with Bernie? i am sure that someone asked Cashman the question last night about why Bernie was not brought back this season. and he answered it candidly.
he was saying that he didn’t bring him back this year because Bernie had a very disappointing season in 2005, and when he was brought him back in 2006, it was with the understanding that he would be an OCCASIONAL DH/5th OFer.
that was the role he was signed to fill, which is why he was signed for the modest sum of $1.5M. because that’s what bench players earn. but Torre kept playing him, in Cashman’s opinion, more than he was supposed to.
that explains why he wasn’t brought back in 2007.
i doubt Cashman just launched into an unprompted tirade about Bernie Williams.
randy l – the point was that girls and old men and people who hate cashman for no reason let sentiment rule over logic. so your running might help with your spelling but it doesnt help with simple analogies.
also, any time of day someone comes on here, you are posting. dont pretend like someone that blogs 23 hours of the day spends his other hour running outside of his penthouse on the ocean. makes you even more laughablly adolescent.
thirdly, glad you admit that i was right on the third point thereby rendering your initial attack on me moot.
finally, you still havent addressed any of the points broughbt up re: the discussion at hand.
ps i hope it doesnt take you another hour to come up with a lame-a$$ rebuttal like the last one.
Cashman must have been drunk. Guess he figures if Hank can shoot his mouth off, so can he.
smart businessmen stay on good terms with one of the most recognizable and financially potent employers in their chosen field.
the yankees are a business. and if your current or former boss (or anyone for that matter) calls you… you retunr the call no matter what.
the point of the article with the sox was to help those who say bernie would never do something negative to the yankees and that bernie was a true yankee and would never use the media to get a point across.
for the record, i love Bernie Williams. i don’t share in some of the opinions about his character.
sometimes when we are talking about long-time yankees, any (VALID, IMO) criticism of their play is taken so personally by some people.
to me, it was obvious that Bernie could not field his position as far back as 2003. the team tried to do something about it, Torre resisted it.
it was probably as frustrating for the FO as it was for me as a fan.
i really do love Bernie. but he should have been moved to 1B or DH years earlier. i remember he even brought a 1Bman glove to Spring Training one year and asked if he should start learning the position. Torre told him to put it away.
it shouldn’t have come to this. he might even still be playing, who knows?
eyt-
just out of curiosity, how old do you have to be to be an “old man”? i’m sure a few besides me on the blog would be interested in the number you come up with.
and it’s not running that helps language use; it’s throwing.
But according to Pete, that’s not what Cashman said. Pete characterized Cashman’s comment as:
“Joe Torre was wrong to play Williams as often as he did in 2006 because better players were available.”
That’s an opinion, which whether or not you agree with it, is supportable by the facts.
This is very unfortunate. Cashman should be smarter than this. Are we going to bash Jeter in a few years because he spent too much time on supermodels? Did Paulie play the drums too much? Mariano has a restaurant in NYC……
Leave the legends alone. I seem to think that Mickey Mantle had a few other interests……Lets appreciate our “glory days” players and not try to be petty.
GO YANKS!
shut up bernie youre washed up. time to move on and win with new players. the old players need to retire and be happy they made millions playing a game.
The only reason to bash Jeter would be that he refuses to move from SS to a position he can actually play well. Of course, they can and should make him move.
I’m surprised with Cashman on this.
Are his points correct? Some yes, some I don’t know. But that should have been between Cashman and Torre.
What’s the sense in speaking up on it now — to remove the Torre aura to help Girardi? That’s the only possible rationale I can think of. But I think Cash should apologize and leave this alone, quick (maybe Bernie should apologize too, but in my mind Cash should do the right thing either way).
This whole situation with Cash’s comments is like the Joe Torre contract all over again. It’s not necessarily what was said and done but how it was said and done.
The Bernie comments weren’t nice but bothered me a whole lot less than Cashman saying the players last year weren’t mentally tough enough to win.
He assembled the team, so as much as it is an indictment of the manager and the players, it is as big of an indictment on his skills as a GM. He also hasn’t had major changes from last years team so many of those same mentally untough players are showing up in Tampa in a few weeks.
Like I said before, he may have spoken the truth but what good will come out of it?
Where does that little peanut-head Cash get his balls, throwing dirt on Bernie out of the blue?
This is the second time in a month that this bug-eyed little squirt has embarassed our team while playing kissyface with his new drinking buddy, Epstein. Anyone who thinks that’s accidental isn’t paying attention.
If Cash doesn’t like the new world order with fatmouth Hank in charge (and he shouldn’t) then he should demand a sitdown, behind closed doors, and tell the powers that be what he’s prepared to do and what he isn’t. These moves from the Dallas Green/Larry Brown “How to Get Fired and Still Get Paid” handbook are making him look like a punk.
Here’s you 15 seconds of fame…
Boston Herald’s own Jessica Heslam
Snot-nosed, arrogant, wench.
“Yeah wicked snot”
Way to take the high road.
Whoa..
The quote you showed was from hmmm at 10:01. I just was showing some support for what he wrote. Yes you and I disagree, but what else is new. That’s the good part of this blog!
I just can’t understand why Cash said what he said. Leaving aside whether or not any of it is true, what possible motivation would he have for questioning the mental toughness of what’s essentially the current team, or bashing a former player.
It just doesn’t seem very Cash-like, and makes me wonder whether something’s going on with him.
I’ve got a little inside info on this. One of my college buddies helped produce Bernie’s 2003 album “The Journey Within.
“The release coincided with the 2003 all-star game here in Chicago, and I went to the release party at the House of Blues.
The record company had a lot of promotional stuff for the record, dating back well before the release. Bernie was injured for much of the middle of that season — I think he had his knee ’scoped or something — and was out from 5/21 til right before the all-star game.
When the record company kept pushing him to make more promotional appearances Bernie was very reticent. He told my buddy that the Yankees were getting really pissed that he was doing all the record promotion stuff. They felt it was taking away from his rehab.
So . . . Bernie was aware of the Yanks’ feelings well before 05. What Cashman said wasn’t anything new re the Yanks and Bernie but something old and no doubt festering.
I wish we could see video of what Cashman said or at least more perspective from Pete of how he heard all of this & in what context. The way it’s being portrayed doesn’t sound like Cashman.
O’Neill was there but I didn’t get a chance to speak to him. In the wake of Cashman’s comments, talking to Bernie was a priority.
This from Pete Caldera’s blog:
“On Saturday evening, Cash responded by text, saying he would speak personally with Bernie to get a fair assessment of his comments, which Brian felt were portrayed as “far worse” than the entire conversation of Friday evening. Still, Cash said he took “full responsibility” for what was said.”
Do we know what exactly was asked to get such a responce from Cash?
What Cashman had Bubba Crosby as a backup.Williams had a .350 avg AGAINST LEFTIES yet it was lefties who dominated the Yankees even A-Rod.But Williams is still wrong for not taking Joe Torre not Cashmans offer for spring training rather then play Jazz.When Torre was the middle man both Cashman and Williams should have forgotten there differances and helped the Yankees not hurt.
I posted this before, I don’t know why it didn’t show up…
From Pete Caldera’s blog:
“On Saturday evening, Cash responded by text, saying he would speak personally with Bernie to get a fair assessment of his comments, which Brian felt were portrayed as “far worse” than the entire conversation of Friday evening. Still, Cash said he took “full responsibility” for what was said.”
Wow people must be really bored.
Now they want audio so they can listen to the tone of Cashman’s voice when he said Bernie stunk and was too focused on outside activities. Who cares…it means nothing except for Peter getting a few more hits on his blog.
We all know that Bernie will make up with the Yanks at some point and all will be forgiven.
By the way Cash was right…Bernie did suck in ‘05 and Torre being loyal played him too often in the beginning of the season. He probably did not have to say that but Bernie is a big boy folks…He has made well over 90 million from the Yanks…he can deal with it.
The Sox management regularly lambastes their players…Schilling is fat , Manny is lazy and its no big deal. They even win WS for their teams. You people have got to stop putting atheletes on a pedastal
Bernie was coddled by Torre.Stein/Cash signed Kenny Lofton to play CF in 2004 but Torre gave him way too many games out there.Bernie is a guy who started in baseball late so he never had the natural instincts that other players had, so when he lost a step he declined more than others would.Ive often wondered myself how his music career was impacting his playing .Im actually suprised it took this long to come out.
Thanks to Brian for being honest and not speaking in pablum and happy platitudes about a man who had an 85 OPS+ in 2005, and who could only play the outfield at Williamsport.
Bernie might be a classy guy. Doesn’t matter. There’s a way to transition out gracefully, and Bernie didn’t do it. Especially at a time when the team was competitive, he held them back. Imagine in hindsight if Mattingly had insisted on lacing them up in 1996, and then 1997 and 1998. The Yankees wouldn’t have traded him, and Torre would have started him.
And that 2006 season that redeemed Williams? He was still worse than the league-average hitter. From a corner outfielder, that’s not good.
Bernie was a lovely guy. He should fall short of serious Hall of Fame consideration, but the fact that HOF is mentioned says something about his talent. But he really would have done everyone a great favor if he’d brought the same self-effacement, charm, grace, etc., to his decision to retire on time.
I, along with many other fans, were hurt and upset at the way Bernie was handled by the Yanks – I believe he had a good reason not to return, most likely because he already knew how Cashman felt about him. There’s a story there somewhere and maybe some sportswriter (could it be you, Pete?) will ferret it out. Sounds like Bernie is opening up a bit now that he heard Cashman make public statements about him. Bernie is and will always be one of my all time favorite Yankees, nothing can change that. I hope the organization will find a way to smooth this out and give Bernie the respect he deserves.
I don’t know how to quote things, so this is in response to “woah”
I never said that Cashman’s comments were false, I said I was disappointed in them. And I am. True or not, it shouldn’t have been said publicly in my opinion. That’s all.
This isn’t about putting athletes on a pedestal or pointing out a drop in production. Cashman could’ve easily pointed out that Bernie’s skills were deteriorating and didn’t warrant a guaranteed contract without questioning his work ethic. That’s at the heart of the matter.
Questioning a guy’s work ethic, especially someone who put together a pretty solid career, is dangerous ground. Not to mention that he waited over a year to air out dirty laundry? Very poor way for Cash to handle whatever question was posed of him.
As far as this being a beef with Torre…many have pointed out that dropping Bernie was the only way Cash could keep Torre from playing him too much. Fine. That’s a fair point to make, but that’s where it should end. Csh shouldn’t have brought up Bernie’s work ethic. It would’ve been enough to say that he was getting old and the Yankees had to start looking at getting younger and getting better production. That’s business. Questioning, in public, how he prepared himself is personal and out of line.
Cashman should tell the truth. I have questioned some of his moves but I have always thought he was honest but not brutal.. Maybe Williams didn’t have the absolute 110% drive to
make his baseball career THE thing in his life. Maybe he’s like a lot of us and was not obsessed with his career. If people can’t handle the truth, that’s their problem.
How Mike Francesa will handle this? The number of times last year he told us how “Bernie just missed tying that ballgame up” with a foulball in his lone start.
east side yankee
joeysdadjoe
john_halfz
cashman is a jackass for bringing up an opinion about bernie williams that has no relevance to anything. it has nothing to do with anything except to let the present players know that their general manager takes unprovoked verbal sucker punches at ex- players and yankee icons who were and are a class act.
whether or not cashman’s opinions are true or not, how is it professional to bring them up now just because a fan asked? i think he got caught up in the strange new dynamic he has with theo epstein who was sitting next to him when he went off on williams.
cashman should get control of his mouth and remember who the real opponent is.
If he was more interested in plinking the guitar, it’s a salient point. Many people overvalue Bernie’s contributions from 2005-06 because of what he did in the decade prior. I no more wanted Bernie Williams on my 2006 Yankees than I wanted Don Mattingly or Ron Guidry. If his guitar interest was getting in the way of his minimal contributions to the team, it’s relevant.
Let’s stop deifying Bernie.
john_halfz
let’s stop deifying brian cashman. last winter while he was taking his stand on bernie williams he was hiring marty miller and kei igawa.
Cashman’s comments were asinine. There was no reason to attack a guy who will be remembered fondly much longer than Cashman will be. Cash hasn’t come close to accomplishing what Bernie has.
“john_halfz
let’s stop deifying brian cashman. last winter while he was taking his stand on bernie williams he was hiring marty miller and kei igawa.”
Exactly!
Bernie just got old; I don’t think the music got in the way of his playing. Cashman is right in that Torre should have played Melky more. But Torre was always faithful to his veterans-faithful to a fault. Bernie needs to talk to Cash, then officially retire.
Shame on you, pete, for trying to make sensationalist headlines like this. This feud is only heating up because of someone like you goading Bernie into firing a response back at Cash just so you could print it. I thought you were better than that.
“girls … let sentiment rule over logic”
Oh, if only I could be logical and intelligent like EYT. Surely you can make your point without being sexist.
As for the comments regarding Abreu way back at the start- comments were made that his early season struggles might have resulted from him not having a full spring training after the oblique pull. That’s what had him “out of shape.”
Anyway- we’re only weeks away… if you’re not already, get excited, people!
Cashmans statements about toughness could also be a message to the team as a whole. Get your s@#$@ together and play baseball like you were hired to do. Don’t come to ST out of shape, not ready to play for your paycheck…you can, and will be replaced. At least, that’s one of several ways to look at it. Who knows what his real reason was? One thing to come out of it was…I’ll bet it got some peoples attention. At least, on this blog.
“let’s stop deifying brian cashman. last winter while he was taking his stand on bernie williams he was hiring marty miller and kei igawa”– Randy I.
Randy, as usual, I couldn’t agree with you any more.
Apart from the gratuitous cheap shots Cashman took at 51, I also found it amusing to listen to Cashman criticize Abreu and Damon for being out of shape.
Is it true? I’ll take Cashman’s word for it.
But where does Cashman accept responsibility for the woeful conditioning of his entire team during the first months of the season because he hired Marty Miller as the conditioning and strength coach– a supposed “performance enhancement specialist” who hadn’t trained major league ball players in nine years.
Here’s a few quotes from an anonymous player about Cashman’s new hire in a April 13, 2007 article in the NY Daily News.
“Marty isn’t a baseball guy like Mangold was,” said one player, speaking on the condition of anonymity…Marty has been given a lot of pull, and I think he’s a little too gung-ho right now…”
During the first day of workouts with pitchers and catchers, the pair’s pre-workout stretching program did not include any stretching exercises for the players’ arms.
“Right off the bat, (Miller has) got a bad rap,” said the player, who also called the team’s current pregame stretch routine inadequate. “Pitchers and catchers out there not stretching their arms? Their thing is that the active stretch gets everything stretched out, but that’s garbage.”
“According to the player, Miller and Cavalea have tried to force some of their program on players, many of whom have had successful careers for more than a decade. The response has been a combination of resistance and indifference.
By April 13, 2007, the Yankees had the following players who suffered strained or pull while on the DL
1) Mike Mussina
2) Bobby Abreu
3) Andy Pettite
4) CMW
5) Johnny Damon
6) Hideki Matsui
I guess they all must have reported to camp out of shape.
Cash’s comments were unnecessary however Bernie has nothing to bitch about in terms of how the NYY treated him. The Yankees played him everyday LONG after he had ceased to be an everyday player.
“jeff January 27th, 2008 at 11:21 am
Shame on you, pete, for trying to make sensationalist headlines like this. This feud is only heating up because of someone like you goading Bernie into firing a response back at Cash just so you could print it. I thought you were better than that.”
So you would rather be uninformed as to what’s going on? It’s not sensationalist, its the truth.
Drew
It doesn’t matter whether it’s true or not, it’s simply unnecessary and not newsworthy.
“By April 13, 2007, the Yankees had the following players who suffered strained or pull while on the DL
1) Mike Mussina
2) Bobby Abreu
3) Andy Pettite
4) CMW
5) Johnny Damon
6) Hideki Matsui”
Pettitte and Damon never went on the DL. Pettitte strained his back lifting weights (which was his OWN workout program) but he was ready and made 7 appearances in April. Damon basically admitted he came into camp overweight.
there is no need to artificially stack the deck to make the point that Miller was a bad experiment, for whatever reason.
Cashman was on the money when he called into question the lack of mental toughness shown by the Yanks in last year’s postseason.
However, Cashman should know better than to question the committment of the player with the most postseason home runs of all time, the man who’s class exemplified the last Yankees’ dynasty. Cashman should have been smart enough to keep his thoughts in house. In a war of public opinion, Brian Cashman will lose to Bernie Williams 100 times out of 100.
Brian Cashman should spend more time on addressing the gigantic holes on HIS 2008 Yankees roster. It’s HIS job to provide a functioning bullpen, not the patchwork morass that HE has constructed. It’s HIS job to provide a first baseman on HIS $200mil roster. Brian Cashman wanted authority on decision making. Well he had it and it hasn’t gone well.
Cashman’s best buddy Theo (Never Saw A Steroid User I Wouldn’t Hire) Epstein praised Cashman’s player development skills. Epstein is right.Unfortunately, there’s more to being a General Manager than player development. It’s the rest of the job description where Brian Cashman struggles with at times.
matt-
it also doesn’t make sense that cashman complains about players not showing up in shape when he’s the one in charge of making sure that players show up in shape. he spent about 50 million dollars on igawa and had no idea that he hadn’t thrown a pitch until his first pitch in spring training. what’s up with that?
and as far as the marty miller conditioning fiasco, i don’t think it’s totally over because the yankees haven’t hired a conditioning coach still who measures up in experience to mangold who miller replaced. they have a kid as their conditioning coach who has all the qualifications a good assistant, dana cavalea is reportedly a great guy, but what are his qualifications to be the number one guy? i think he’s still working on his online masters
degree.
if cashman is so interested in the 2008 pre season conditioning of his players, you’d think he’d hire someone to monitor it who wasn’t working on his online degree .
Cashman is the best thing the Yankees have going for them. If it weren’t for him, we’d still have a rotation with Randy Johnson and Kevin Brown instead of Joba and Wang, and Miguel Cairo playing second base and Bubba Crosby in centerfield
So for the Kei Igawa signing, I will gladly take our amazing farm system and staying away from stupidass signings
Man o man, there are people here who just love to make a mountain out of a molehill.
There is no question that Bernie is a beloved Yankee.
There is no question his retirement, or lack thereof, has not gone well for EITHER the Yankees or Bernie.
Their have been both rumors and articles questioning Bernie work ethic. There is evidence that in his pursuit of music, he may have made some compromises to his baseball career.
So what. I worship Mantle although I recognize that he womanized and drank himself to death. My heroes don’t have to be perfect people.
And while I believe the Yankees are far more loval to their players then most others in the business of baseball, this is still a business.
No one here should be deifying Brian Cashman.
No one here should be deifying Bernie Williams.
No one should be d*mning Brian to H*ll.
No one should be d*mning Bernie to H*ll.
There is so much black and white here. So many absolute and unforgiving opinions, regardless of which side of the fence you are on.
I believe, in context, what Brian said was true.
I also believe he should NOT have said it.
It was inappropriate and in bad taste.
However, I do not believe Brian was attempting to throw Bernie under the bus.
I think in trying to be candid, he mis-spoke
I believe he would take it back and express himself differently if he had the opportunity.
He made an error in judgement.
Not a crime, maybe a misdemeanor.
If we don’t want people to be robotically politically correct in every word they say, we have to understand some things will be said they would have been best not said. Let’s put away the awards and the hangman’s noose, and move on.
OYF, you continue to be the best thing about this blog.
very well said.
OldYanksFans,
As a fellow old Yanks fan myself, I agree with your feelings about Mantle. IMO, there is a differece in the situation with Bernie Williams.No one in an official capacity with the Yankees ever called Mickey Mantle into question.There was no need to question Bernie Williams in public.
It’s Brian Cashman’s job to be an official spokesman for the ballclub.Cashman made a mistake here and should be held accountable, just as he should for the bullpen he has assembled and the Damon/Giambi/Matsui situation that clogs the roster.
Conversely, he should be praised for improving the farm system. The final assessment of Cashman’s career with the Yankees won’t be written until after it’s seen how he uses it.
But I do believe that it is fair to question the appropriateness of Cashman’s comments.
Yep, my bad, I misquoted the article. Should have been just players who suffered strains or pulls.
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2007/04/13/2007-04-13_yankee_train_wreck-3.html
A list from which I also omitted Phil Hughes, who pulled a hamstring a few weeks later.
OLD YANKEES FAN, we may be exaggerating Cashman’s lack of tact in this episode. But to my mind, his comments bespeak a disconcerting pattern of blaming others for his mistakes.
Here’s Cashman’s comments on the day the organization fired Marty Miller: “”[The injuries] are all different,” Cashman said. “It’s tough to see if there’s a common denominator. Is it based on our strength and conditioning program? I would not say that’s the case.”
“”It got to the point where the perception is there’s a problem here.” Right Cash, not a real one, just the perception of one. A freak anomaly explains the rash of injuries I suppose.
If you want to criticize Abreu, Damon, and Williams for their work ethic and delinquency in their responsibilites, go ahead. But Cashman needs to accept blame for his players’ negligence and for the poor conditioning they received in Spring Training that only compounded it. The hallmark of leadership is when the man in charge refuses to pass the buck.
oldyanksfans-
i agree that cashman probably simply misspoke . that’s why i’ve tried to temper my inclination to overreact to his words. the problem is that when someone says something that they shouldn’t , they need to remedy the situation with an apology .
Golf Channel broadcaster Kelly Tilghman had to aplologize for a poor use of words when she was making a joke last week about tiger woods. cashman’s words were obviously not as serious a blunder, but they still need an apology to set the record straight.
once he does that, then it’s time to move on. if he doesn’t then, as i said before, it’s a different situation.
randy, this was posted above. it DOES sound like Cashman is going to reach out to Bernie.
“From Pete Caldera’s blog:
“On Saturday evening, Cash responded by text, saying he would speak personally with Bernie to get a fair assessment of his comments, which Brian felt were portrayed as “far worse†than the entire conversation of Friday evening. Still, Cash said he took “full responsibility†for what was said.—
In a comparison of Mic to Bernie, Mickey always played balls-to-the-wall. Mickey set an example in how he played and how unselfish he was. As much as I love Bernie, the same can’t be said. It has been documented in a number different places that Bernie was always the last in and first out, didn’t hussle, and didn’t work hard to improve his poor routes or poor thowing. This does not reek of commitment and might piss a few people off. I mean I love Bernie. He was ‘The Guy’ in our WS run. But facts is facts.
Someone here with inside info, documented the conflict of Bernie’s music with his baseball. My guess is there were other instances. Being a professional musician is pretty time consuming. I sure Bernie was torn and conflicted, and did the best he could.
On the Bronx Banter last year (or 2 years ago?), we had a 2 day discussion about an article, where a ‘highly respected (unnamed) Yankee’ dissed a long time Yankee (unnamed) postion player. He mentioned the last-in, first-out thing, and said that it was a very talented player who did NOT work to improve his weaknesses. As reported, it was a rather ‘dark’ article. After much Banter discussion, article checking and other interaction, most of us believed it was Mo talking about Bernie (because of the mention of ‘position’ player, it may have pointed to a pitcher). We were not sure it was Mo, but the concensus was that it was Bernie. It was obvious that statement was made off the record, and the reporter made sure to not specifically say who the parties invloved were.
As I stated, I don’t think Cashman should have made the statement the ‘way it’s been reported (I wasn’t there) to have been made. I believe he would take it back if he could. However, I believe it is true. It is even possible that Cashman understated the reality. I can’t say if he SHOULD apologize. Maybe he will. Maybe there will be ‘more to come’ on this issue.
I view Cashman as a very decent man. He has been with the Yankees about as long as Bernie. He has no history of trashing players, but conversely, talking up guys like Phillips, Crosby, Farnsworth and others.
Cashman knows the story. We DON’T.
Most people prefer, and even need, to sit in judgement.
I prefer to give the benefit of the doubt.
I do NOT believe the ‘Bernie treatment’ by the Yankees was all Cashman, but probably a concensus from the Yankee FO. Bernie was hurt, and probably didn’t react as well as he should have.
I am not vidicating Cashman for what he said. I believe it was a mistake. A 3 on a scale of 1(OK) – 10(Bad). In terms of ’should be held accountable’, accountable for what? Lack of judgement? For telling a truth that may have been better unsaid? Do you know for a fact that others players didn’t complain about Bernie? You and I simply don’t know the depth and nature of this ‘complaint’.
And what does ‘assembled and the Damon/Giambi/Matsui situation that clogs the roster’ have to do with anything? Does that ‘fact’ have any bearing at all on what Cashman said about Bernie, or are you just showing in sh*t from left field to discredit Cashman?
There are ‘rules’ to productive arguing/debating. The first one is STAY ON POINT. Anything said that is not directly related to THE SPECIFIC STATEMENT MADE BY CASHMAN ABOUT BERNIE is simply BS and smoke. What drugs Cashman did, what women he scr*wed, if he cheated on his taxes, and what trades he has made has ABSOLUTELY NO relevence to this discussion.
And what drugs Bernie did, what women he scr*wed, if he cheated on his taxes, and what his favorite music is has ABSOLUTELY to relevence to this discussion.
And as an aside, I believe that having 5 newspaper stories printed on everything one says, MIGHT be construed as being ‘held accountable’. What would you prefer? A public flogging?
“There are ‘rules’ to productive arguing/debating. The first one is STAY ON POINT. Anything said that is not directly related to THE SPECIFIC STATEMENT MADE BY CASHMAN ABOUT BERNIE is simply BS and smoke”
dude, you are awesome.
this is one of the biggest problems with any discussion on this blog.
EYT:
Guess all those people applauding Williams at YS – brimming with “sentiment” – were either “girls” or “old men.” If you want to get technical, a fan, by definition, is a sentimenalist: there is nothing financially or practically redeeming about ‘rooting’ for a team, which is, above all, an ‘emotional’ investment. Your comment on ‘girls’ and ‘old men’ also show that you think in cliches and stereotypes, so rant on; you’re more to be pitied than censored.
hey bod…better start working on bhumi #5 as i never realized the path to enlightnement went thru the lohud blog.
and cliches and steretypes are based on the truth (not all the time but alot) thats why they bother people so much. old men and women ARE more sentimental then younger men on the whole, and frankly i think its interesting that an ass-piring buddha like yourself would find being sentimental a negative. moron.
back to the topic at hand, randy l. keeps saying cashman better apologize to bernie “or else”!!! dun-dun-dun! Or else, what? He becomes a Sox fan? Or maybe he will quit posting on this board and deveote more time to jogging around his penthouse on the ocean.
eyt-
all you have to do is click on my username and you can click on my profile and see exactly who i am instead of whatever image it is you have in your mind. i’m not posting here anonymously . if you want to leave a nasty note on my business message machine knock yourself out.
there’s two kind of people here on cape cod. there’s the ones who already have money and then there’s the ones that work here. i’m the working kind. if you’re going to toss insults at least get it right.
randy l is a sox fan.
randy is definitely not a Sox fan.
we don’t always agree, but i would never accuse him of such poor taste.
my bad. i found that most “yankee” fans that are born and raised in mass esp the cape do so more to upset someone than out of love for the team. but i wouldnt be surprised if he watches nesn more than yes
OldYanksFan,
“I am not vidicating Cashman for what he said. I believe it was a mistake. A 3 on a scale of 1(OK) – 10(Bad). In terms of ’should be held accountable’, accountable for what? Lack of judgement? For telling a truth that may have been better unsaid? Do you know for a fact that others players didn’t complain about Bernie? You and I simply don’t know the depth and nature of this ‘complaint’.”
First you say you are “not vindicating Cashman.But yet you question what he should be held accountable for.
I told you what he should be held accountable for.
My point is that, as the second in command in the Yankee hierarcy, Brian Cashman was out of line in making public his feelings about Bernie Williams. Whether you like it or not,when it comes to public comments, the General Manager’s job demands a level of professionalism that Cashman usually adheres to. In this case, Brian Cashman acted like a rank amateur. Is that “on point” enough for you???
The problem with a lot of folks here is that any criticism of Brian Cashman or the yankees is like heresy. And by the way, I am a very positive person who gives the benefit of the doubt. But I’ve raised 2 children and know there comes a point where criticism does more good than blind loyalty.
Cashman screwed up this one time. The reason I brought up the other problems is that those are the issues Cashman needs to focus on before he screws up again. Bernie Williams is not relevant in 2008, the bullpen is.Hope that’s “on point” enough for you.
“cliches and stereotypes are based on truth…NOT ALL THE TIME BUT ALOT …that’s why they bother people so much.” EYT.
No, they “bother” people because they are based on the distorted thinking of ugly-minded, little fist-shaking people like you, who know they don’t have the intellect to debate objectively and dispassionately. So instead, they revert to name calling, sexism, racism, and all of those “isms” that attempt to dehumanize others, and then they call them “truth.” I guess the ones that are “truth” are the ones aimed at the people you, EYT, feel most threatened by. Bravo, loser.
EYT,
“i found that most “yankee†fans that are born and raised in mass esp the cape do so more to upset someone than out of love for the team.”
As a resident of MA for over 50 years, I can attest that your statement is far from the truth. There are a lot of Yankee fans in New England. The vast majority of them got that way because their parents were Yankee fans.
Even if Cashman thought those things, he should have enough respect for Bernie Williams & Joe Torre to keep his mouth shut.
Bernie will be the 3rd base coach for the Boston Red Sox
Cashman is an bleep. Bernie is a GREAT YANKEE!!!
Cashman doesn’t know how to put a good deal together to get GOOD PITCHERS!!!! he only knows how to get browns and pavano’s…..