When Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner told the Associated Press on Thursday that Aaron Boone will continue as manager, it might have led some to assume that general manager Brian Cashman’s return was assured.
In reality, Cashman’s status remains unresolved. He and Steinbrenner might agree to continue their longstanding working relationship -- as we reported Monday, most in the Yankees organization expect that to happen -- but his situation is different from Boone’s.
Last year, the Yanks signed Boone to a three-year contract. If the team wanted to move on, it would have had to fire him -- a move the Yankees have not made on any skipper since the 1990s.
Cashman’s contract expires at the end of the month. If he and Steinbrenner do not agree on a new one, it will not be a firing or a resignation. It will simply be that the sides did not agree to terms.
That has not been settled, and is not particularly close to being settled, according to league sources. Steinbrenner’s announcement on Boone did nothing to make a resolution for Cashman more or less likely.
