Yankees hire Carlos Beltran as special adviser to Brian Cashman

Carlos Beltran will join the Yankees front office in some capacity, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reported today on Twitter. Beltran, who retired last year after winning the first ring of his 20-year career, signed a three-year deal with the Yankees prior to the 2014 season. He spent two-plus seasons with the team before being sent to the Rangers at the 2016 non-waiver trade deadline.

Beltran was among the candidates for the Yankees’ managerial job after Joe Girardi was let go last fall. Such a sudden transition from playing to managing would have been nearly unprecedented, so the fact that Beltran was under consideration at all was a testament to how highly the organization thought of him.

After some time spent away from the game, Beltran will now be back with the team as a “special adviser” to Brian Cashman. It remains to be seen exactly what that might entail. Some who get hit with the special adviser tag simply show up at spring training every year to offer a few tips. Others play a more tangible hands-on role influencing decisions and shaping baseball operations. Former pitchers like Dan Haren and Brandon McCarthy are good recent examples of the latter.

It should be noted that Beltran’s agent, Dan Lozano, also represents Manny Machado, who the Yankees will sit down with on Wednesday. Beltran stated that it was mere coincidence that he was hired just a day before the Yankees were to court one of the most high-profile free agents on the market.

Regardless of the exact role Beltran plays, it’s great news to see him back in the organization. He is one of the most well-respected figures in the game, and he seemed to leave a positive impression on everyone who was around when he was an actual player for the Yankees. Here’s hoping he can have impact behind the scenes now that his playing career is over.