Now that the offseason has started, it’s time for us to wrap up the 2017 edition of the Brian Cashman approval poll. Not too many people had high hopes for this Yankees team when the season started, but they somehow made it all the way to the ALCS. Is that a good enough reason to approve of the job Cashman did as GM this year, or is it his fault that they didn’t make it all the way to the World Series?
This year’s poll started back in January after the Yankees had signed Aroldis Chapman and Matt Holliday, and traded Brian McCann to the Astros. At that point, 79% of Pinstripe Alley readers approved of the job that Cashman was doing as the team’s GM. Cashman’s approval rating skyrocketed after the season started and the Yankees played well in April and May.
It is typical for Yankees fans to like Cashman when the team is winning, and turn on him when the team is playing poorly (at least when it comes to our approval polls). June ended up being an awful month for both the Yankees and Cashman. The Yankees had a disastrous trip to California and ended up losing seven straight games. In turn, Cashman saw his approval rating drop to a low of 76%.
Thankfully, the Yankees were able to pull it together in July. Cashman was also able to work out quite a few trades before the deadline passed. He brought over David Robertson, Todd Frazier, and Tommy Kahnle from the White Sox. The Yankees also acquired Sonny Gray from the Athletics, as well as Jaime Garcia from the Twins.
The Yankees fully committed to their goal of winning the division, and the division race really did come down to the wire. During the last week of the season, it was entirely possible that the Yankees might force the Red Sox to play Game 163. That didn’t end up being the case, but it was a fun fight all the way to the end. The Yankees ultimately had to face the Twins in the Wild Card game, and cleared that hurdle. There were some hiccups during the ALDS against Cleveland, but the Yankees ended up advancing all the way to the ALCS. Although it was disappointing to see the Yankees head home early, it was also amazing that they made it that far at all.
Now that we know that Joe Girardi won’t return as the team’s manager, it looks like Cashman will have his work cut out for him this offseason. In addition to replacing Girardi, it’s possible that the Yankees will start from scratch with a whole new coaching staff. The Yankees also need to address some of the team’s weaknesses, like improving the rotation and finding a real DH. We can pretty much count on Cashman putting together an interesting trade or two, and the Yankees will have some free agency money to spend if they choose to. It should be an exciting offseason, and hopefully the 2018 team will be even better than this year’s.
We’ll start the 2018 approval poll back up in January. For now we’ll leave you with this question: Do you approve of the job Cashman did this season? Vote in the poll below and let us know what you think in the comment section. If you’re anti-Cashman, we want to hear why.