GM Brian Cashman addressed the current situation between the Yankees and the only player anyone really cares about for the club at the moment, DJ LeMahieu, on Wednesday.
As manager Aaron Boone said Tuesday, it’s no secret that the Yankees are pursuing LeMahieu heavily right now and Cashman reiterated that point.
“He’s clearly the most public of those [free agent targets], and therefore, is clearly a great deal of interest and that’s why everyone on this call is trying to cover it and spread the information properly,” Cashman told reporters via Zoom.
But there was also the report from SNY’s Andy Martino that stated the Yankees were waiting to see what happens with LeMahieu before they do anything else. That true, Cash?
“Certainly, it’s driving the bus a little bit,” he said. “We have a very strong, committed roster already and that’s an example of the Steinbrenner family’s commitment to fielding a championship-contending team. DJ LeMahieu’s a big piece of that so we’re certainly not dipping our toes in various waters until we get a feel for how that declares itself.”
The most recent report regarding those negotiations said that both sides were off by $25 million, with LeMahieu looking for a deal worth $100 million over five years, per NJ.com’s Brendan Kuty. Because of that, LeMahieu was reportedly going to start listening to other teams’ offers. But the interest is obviously still there.
And that brings us to another point that Cashman made which is vital to the LeMahieu negotiations and others ahead of spring training: he believes the Yankees will still have the highest payroll in the game next season.
“Im aware of what my directives are from ownership,” he said. “I’m not permitted to share that publicly… but I am aware of what my directives are, and I feel confident that we will again have the highest payroll regardless and so our commitment to fielding a tremendous team is still going to be intact…”
So the luxury tax threshold doesn’t appear to be the cutoff for Cashman, as he navigates the free agency and trade waters. And it also indicates that there is more to shell out to LeMahieu if need be to get the deed done. The Yankees were already close to the luxury tax threshold to begin with, as contracts like Gerrit Cole’s and Giancarlo Stanton’s already bring the payroll past $60 million.
Cashman is usually discrete and sneaky with his moves in the offseason, but this one is clear: LeMahieu is an All-Star that is a vital piece to building a championship team for not only next season, but also beyond. That is why Boone said he hopes to talk to him before Christmas to reach out, and why Cashman will continue to work on making the right deal in LeMahieu’s eyes come to light.
“There’s no promise, there’s no guarantees,” Cashman said. “He’s a special player, he’s done everything right. We were fortunate to have him for two. We’d like to have him for longer and it just remains to be seen if it will work out or not.”
