2019 Must Be the Year of Referendum On Cashman

Brian Cashman has helped the Yankees win only 1 World Series in the last 19 years, only 1 Pennant in the last 16 years, and not even 1 Division title in the last 7 years. In that time, there have been 3 Wild Card births, 1 which led to them getting to within 1 game of the Pennant. But no achievement that ends with the word "Champions" in it.

Given the Yankees' resources and historical standards, this is inexcusable.

What he did before? That was with George Steinbrenner's money and George's permission to spend it, and with Gene Michael's players. He's never done it with his own players and with the money that now belongs to Hal and Hank Steinbrenner.

And yet, with his record, some people calling themselves Yankee Fans still claim that Cashman is the best general manager in the business.

Clearly, they are basing that judgment on what they think his moves of the last 3 or so years are going to do, not on his actual record.

So let's look at the records. The following sets of numbers are: Seasons, Playoff berths, Division titles, Pennants, World Series wins, in each case with a cutoff point of 2003, the last Pennant of the last (so far) Yankee Dynasty. This is the general manager of every World Series-winning team since -- or, if he's been promoted to an office where he has essentially the same (or more) power, like "President of Baseball Operations," as in the case of Walt Jocketty, that:

Theo Epstein, Boston Red Sox 2004-11, Chicago Cubs 2012-18: 15, 9, 3, 3, 3
Brian Sabean, San Francisco Giants, 2004-14: 11, 4, 4, 3, 3
Walt Jocketty, St. Louis Cardinals 2004-18: 15, 9, 7, 4, 2
Dave Dombrowski, Detroit Tigers 2004-15, Boston Red Sox 2016-18: 15, 8, 3, 1
Pat Gillick, Philadelphia Phillies 2006-18: 13, 5, 5, 2, 1
Dayton Moore, Kansas City Royals 2006-18: 13, 2, 2, 2, 1
Brian Cashman, New York Yankees 2004-18: 15, 11, 6, 1, 1
Jeff Luhnow, Houston Astros, 2012-18: 7, 3, 2, 1, 1
Ben Cherington, Boston Red Sox 2012-15: 4, 1, 1, 1
Kenny Williams, Chicago White Sox 2004-18: 15, 2, 1, 1, 1

Here's another way to look at it. Since the 2000 World Series, here is the number of World Series won by each team,with ties broken by having the team more recently having won one listed first:

4: Boston Red Sox
3: San Francisco Giants
2: St. Louis Cardinals
1: Houston Astros, Chicago Cubs, Kansas City Royals, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox, Miami Marlins, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Arizona Diamondbacks
0: Everybody Else

In other words, out of 30 teams, while it looks like the Yankees are tied for 4th, they're actually 7th -- and, in a way, they're also tied for 12th.

Pennants? Since 2003, with ties broken by having the team more recently having won one listed first:

4: Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals
3: San Francisco Giants
2: Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, Detroit Tigers, Texas Rangers
1: Houston Astros, Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Tampa Bay Rays, Colorado Rockies, Chicago White Sox
0: Everybody Else

The Yankees are 12th. That should be considered bad enough. The Mets are 11th. And the Red Sox are 1st. That makes it much worse.

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When Cashman traded Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller, Ivan Nova, and Carlos Beltran at the 2016 trading deadline, he turned the Yankees from a team with, however small, a chance to win the World Series, into a team that had no chance.

When Cashman failed, or chose not, to trade for Justin Verlander at the 2017 trading deadline, he turned the Yankees from a team that would have had a very good chance to win the World Series, as the Houston Astros actually did with Verlander and Beltran, into a team that didn't win the Pennant.

And what did Cashman get for all his trades? Prospects. Some of those prospects, like Gleyber Torres, have already begun to pan out. They have not realized their full potential, because they have not won the Pennant, let alone the World Series. But they have begun to pan out.

What this tells us is that Cashman was waiting for some big contracts come off the books, the sacrificing the 2016, 2017, and 2018 seasons, so that the Yankees would be in position to win it all in 2019.

Sure enough, the Yankees didn't win in 2016, 2017, or 2018. And now, 2019 is here. This was the year we would we were told that the Yankees would be ready to win it all. Win the World Series.

If the Yankees do not win the World Series, or at least the Pennant, in 2019, then that means that Brian Cashman has sold us a pack of lies. That he cannot be trusted under any circumstances. And that he must be fired.

If the 2019 World Series goes to 7 games, with no postponements, Game 7 will be played on October 30. If, by November 2, New York City is not cleaning ticker tape, or whatever they use for ticker tape these days, from the streets of Broadway in Lower Manhattan, then, by that day, Brian Cashman should no longer have a job.

This year must be his referendum. If the Yankees do win the World Series thanks to Cashman's moves over the last 4 seasons, from 2016 onward, then all the people now slavishly parroting the line that he is the best general manager in baseball will has been proven, if not right, then somewhat justified.

But if the Yankees do not win the 2019 World Series, then his sacrificing of 2016, '17 and '18 will have been a waste, and he will be exposed as having sold us a false bill of goods. A pig in a poke. A bum steer. A fraud.

And all those people saying Cashman is the best general manager in baseball will look like what they look like now, idiots, and more so than ever.

I want them to remember this. If we win, they are free to tell me they told me so, and make me eat my words, with no ketchup, and no chaser.

But if we don't win it this year, I reserve the converse right for myself. And I will tell you all that I told you so.

And if that happens, and the Yankees go into the 2019-20 offseason with Cashman still making the necessary decisions, what will be the justification for it? There will be none.

Face it: If George Steinbrenner, as we knew him, were still running the Yankees, Cashman would have been fired during Barack Obama's 2nd term -- maybe even during his 1st.

And yet, some of you would have him still in charge during Donald Trump's 2nd term. Maybe we should impeach and remove Cashman, too. And we don't need 67 Senators to do it. We just need 1 Steinbrenner brother to figure out what I've figured out.

Watch him, Hal. Make this the year we win it all. Make Cashman make this the year we win it all. If he doesn't, be the man your father was, just for one decision.

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Hours until the New Jersey Devils next play a local rival: 7, at 7:00 tonight, against the Philadelphia Flyers, a.k.a. The Philth, will be on Friday night, March 1, at home at the Prudential Center. The next game against the Ne York Rangers, a.k.a. The Scum, will be a week from tomorrow night, at Madison Square Garden. The Devils are not scheduled to play the New York Islanders again during the regular season.

Days until Arsenal play again: 1, at 7:30 AM New York time tomorrow, away to their North London arch-rivals, Tottenham Hotspur. Since their new stadium, which was supposed to be ready at the start of this season, 7 months ago, is still not ready, "Spurs" will "host" the game at the new Wembley Stadium in West London. Whether the "New Tottenham Stadium" will open for any game this season remains to be seen. But between new Wembley and that one game in Milton Keynes, it makes "Spurs" fans like goddamned fools when they call Arsenal "Woolwich Wanderers."

Days until the next North London Derby: See the previous answer.

Days until the New York Red Bulls play again: 1, tomorrow afternoon at 4:30, opening the MLS regular season, away to the Columbus Crew. Metro have advance to the Quarterfinals of the CONCACAF Champions League, defeating Atlético Pantoja of Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic, 5-0 on aggregate (2-0 away, 3-0 at home).

Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 20, on Thursday, March 21, a friendly against Ecuador at Orlando City Stadium. Under 3 weeks.

Days until the Yankees' 2019 Opening Day: 27, on Thursday, March 28, home to the Baltimore Orioles. Under 4 weeks.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series begins: 46, on Tuesday, April 16, at Yankee Stadium II. Under 7 weeks.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": 50, on Saturday night, April 20, against the New England Revolution, at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The next game against the Philadelphia Union will be on Saturday night, June 8, at Talen Energy Stadium in Chester, Pennsylvania. The next game against New York City FC will be on Sunday night, July 14, at Red Bull Arena. The next game against D.C. United iwll be on Wednesday night, August 21, at Audi Field in Washington.

Days until the next Women's World Cup kicks off: 98,  on June 7,  in France. Just 14 weeks. The U.S. team is 3-time and defending Champions.

Days until the Yankees and Red Sox play each other in London: 120, on June 29. Under 4 months.

Days until Rutgers University plays football again: 183, on August 31, home to the University of Massachusetts. A little under 6 months.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: Unknown, because the 2019 schedule hasn't been released yet. Usually, the next season begins on the 1st Friday in September, which would be September 6, which would be 189 days. It has been announced that East Brunswick and its arch-rivals, Old Bridge, will no longer play each other on Thanksgiving Day. That game will not be played early in the season, but we don't yet know when. For most of its history, 1963 to 1987, it was an early-season game, sometimes the opener. And it was announced yesterday that Bob Molarz, head coach for the last 6 seasons, has resigned, citing "personal reasons." 

Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State game: 274, on Saturday, November 30, at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. Under 9 months.

Days until my 50th Birthday, at which point I can join AARP and get discounts for travel and game tickets: 292, on December 18, 2019. Under 10 months.

Days until the Baseball Hall of Fame vote is announced, electing Derek Jeter: 326, on January 21, 2020. Under 11 months.

Days until the next Summer Olympics begins in Tokyo, Japan: 511, on July 24, 2020. Under a year and a half, or a little under 17 months.

Days until the next Presidential election, when we can dump the Trump-Pence regime and elect a real Administration: 613, on November 3, 2020. Under 2 years, or a little over 20 months.

Days until a fully-Democratic-controlled Congress can convene, and the Republicans can do nothing about it: 674, on January 3, 2021. Under 2 years, or a little over 22 months.

Days until Liberation Day: 691, at noon on January 20, 2021. Under 2 years, or under 23 months. Note that this is liberation from the Republican Party, not just from Donald Trump. Having Mike Pence as President wouldn't be better, just differently bad, mixing theocracy with plutocracy, rather than mixing kleptocracy with plutocracy.

Days until the next Winter Olympics begins in Beijing, China: 1,071, on February 4, 2022. Under 3 years, or a little over 35 months.

Days until the next World Cup is scheduled to kick off: 1,361, on November 21, 2022, in Qatar. Under 4 years, or under 45 months. The charges of corruption against Qatar may yet mean that they will lose the tournament, in which case it will be moved to a nation where it would not be too hot to play it in June and July.