Now that August is in the rearview mirror, it’s time for another Brian Cashman approval poll. Pinstripe Alley readers have overwhelmingly approved of Cashman so far this season. His numbers have yet to drop below 75%, and although June was a down month, Cashman’s approval rating bounced back in a big way after the trade deadline ended. Most Yankees fans seemed to be happy with the Sonny Gray trade that he pulled together, if nothing else. Do Yankees fans still feel the same way a month later?
The Yankees didn’t get off to the best start in August, dropping their first four games in a row. They also faced the Red Sox during two consecutive weekends and lost both of those series, failing to capitalize on the opportunity to gain some ground in the standings. The month ended on a sour note with the Yankees being swept by the Indians, and the Yankees finished August with a 14-15 record.
What went wrong in August? For starters, it was another rough month for the Yankees injury-wise. Both CC Sabathia and Masahiro Tanaka had to spend time on the 10-day disabled list, and there was some concern that it might be the end of the road for Sabathia. The veteran southpaw, however, has pitched well since receiving an injection in his knee. The Yankees were also forced to place Matt Holliday, Clint Frazier, Luis Cessa, and Garrett Cooper on the disabled list during that time.
After slumping in the second half, it was finally revealed that Aaron Judge has been icing his shoulder. It seems like it would be better to put him on the disabled list and let him rest if he’s dealing with an injury, but there isn’t any indication that the Yankees plan to do so. They need him to get better if they are going to make a playoff run.
Perhaps the biggest story to come out of August was that the Yankees were forced to remove Aroldis Chapman from the role of closer. He gave up eight earned runs over eight appearances, including three home runs. Chapman continues to claim that he is not injured, but his recent performance is concerning considering how many years are left on his contract.
It is too soon to say whether the Yankees’ deadline trades have worked out, but we can take a look at August performances. The players that the Yankees acquired had mixed results during their first month with the team. Sonny Gray made five starts in August and finished the month with a 2.70 ERA. Gray didn’t give up more than two runs during any of those outings, but the Yankees only won two of those games. That’s on the offense. Jaime Garcia failed to give the Yankees length during his first month in pinstripes, never even pitching a full six innings. He surrendered 14 runs during five outings.
The Yankees were hoping Todd Frazier would provide the team with some sort of offensive boost, but he slashed just .221/.352/.395 in August. On the plus side, David Robertson finished August with 20 strikeouts and a 1.29 ERA. Tommy Kahnle had three bad appearances in a row to balloon his August ERA to an ugly 5.23.
If the season ended today, the Yankees would win one of the Wild Card spots. They currently trail the Red Sox by 4.5 games, so they have a lot of work to do if they want to catch up during the next few weeks. There are plenty of teams nipping at the Yankees’ heels, and it would be a shame to see them fade down the stretch like they did last September. Hopefully this team can pull itself together, but if they can’t, is that Cashman’s fault? Will he be to blame if the Yankees don’t make the playoffs?
Vote in the poll below and let us know what you think of the job Brian Cashman is doing as GM.