Brian Cashman Defends Gary Sanchez and Decision Not to Get Pitching in Postseason Press Conference

Following the loss to the Houston Astros in the ALCS, Yankees fans everywhere abandoned their better judgment and went after New York GM Brian Cashman. Another year, another World Series without pinstripes involved. That'll do it.

During his presser on Thursday, though, Cashman broke down numerous topics of contention, and his answers to a few of them won't due much to assuage the fan base.

Among his bullet points was the Yankees' failure to add starting pitching in recent years to help them get over the top. Cashman made some things clear, on his end.

From an outside perspective, it certainly looks like Cashman basically just stuck with what he had and didn't attempt to go after some big-name guys. While we all know what happened with Verlander, plenty of New Yorkers wanted Patrick Corbin to come to town. They wanted it bad.

Cashman admitted against that an offer was made, but was rejected. Now, Corbin is getting ready to pitch in Game 3 of the World Series, and yet...Cash is claiming he didn't "pass" on Corbin? We've heard enough by now that we expect the Yankees to be able to counter any initial contact without being totally hamstrung. Apologies in advance, but it's not quite enough to say, "We offered, and he never came back." Is anyone really buying that?

And then there's Gerrit Cole. Last year, the Pirates traded Cole to the Astros in a season-changing deal, and accepted an offer the Yanks almost certainly could've topped. Did Cashman balk at including Miguel Andujar and Clint Frazier? Once again, it's fair to ask. Cole, prior to the World Series, was unhittable against anyone he faced. Imagine him with the Yankees? Man.

Meanwhile on offense, Gary Sanchez received plenty of hate from the NY faithful after his monumental struggles at the plate during the postseason. Hitting .129 in October with four hits and three RBI is not what you expect from a star slugger. Yet that's what Sanchez, supposedly fully healthy, delivered.

Cashman may have come out to defend his backstop, but he choked in the playoffs, plain and simple.

For New York, they're going to need to have a busy offseason in order to complete their chase of a 28th championship. And you'd better believe millions of eyes will be all over Cashman. This press conference did very little to calm Yankee fans' nerves.