You can sit there and tell me that the Yankees are inching closer to the playoffs and it has nothing to do with Brian Cashman, it has to do with talent. I’ll tell you you’re half wrong. Of course talent is part of it, but let’s be perfectly honest; the New York Yankees had some opportunities to upgrade both in the off-season and in by the trade deadline and Brian Cashman kept saying 1 word... Patience. I was getting crazy this past winter and I just couldn’t understand why the mighty Yankees weren’t living up to their world famous spend rep and just pulling the trigger on any and everything we could get our hands on. Cashman worked the phones slowly, kept calm and picked up a few broken down pitchers for cheap. While it was unusual, you had to trust the inner workings of Brian Cashman’s brain. Not only was he refusing to part with youngsters like Jesus Montero and Austin Romine, he had faith in guys like Ivan Nova and Eduardo Nunez.
Let’s face it, the season started and when Phil Hughes went down with “dead arm”, all of Yankeeland was screaming that we should have "done something" and we blew it. Cashman never blinked. He stood with his arms crossed like Miyagi at the end of the Karate Kid and smiled. He knew what to do. 
He didn’t cave and he didn’t panic. He threw a washed up pitcher named Bartolo Colon in to fill the hole and that paid off beautifully. We rode that through to July 30th and when Colon started breaking down, we went to a 6 man rotation to figure it all out. While I never ever like making rotation decisions this late into the season, what the hell do I know? 
We all wanted Jesus Montero up after the season started, but as the season went on, Montero started slowly at Scranton. Some suggested maybe he wasn’t the player we thought he was, others thought trading him at the deadline for pitching was a good idea, me included by the way. Again, what the hell do I know? But Brian Cashman didn’t budge. He had confidence in his guys, nothing was going to change. So we stayed the course.
Eduardo Nunez filed in for Derek Jeter while Jeet was out and while his bat was terrific, his fielding may have been the worst I’ve ever seen. Yet, Cashman stuck with the kid. Overtime, he’s improved a bit and is constantly involved in the team's operations.
The point is Brian Cashman has made some pretty smart decisions this season. Look, you may not like him but he knows his Yankees and he gives a shit. He never lost focus; he never gave up and at the end of the day, that’s something you really have to respect. The Yankees are in first place right now. The Rays are closing in on the Red Sox for the Wild Card.
What would be a better day for me is if on the last day of the season, and the Yankees had won the division and the Rays got the Wild Card. Then, all of Vegas could get into a tizzy, the odds from April don’t mean bunk. Then you'd see Brian Cashman...the mighty Brian Cashman looking out on the field as the Yankees start yet another playoff run. 
He'd be smiling with his arms crossed, like Miyagi at the end of the Karate Kid, and God Damn it, his look will say it all… Patience.
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