As Yankees spring training opens, what is at stake for the organization in 2024?

TAMPA -- Around the Yankees right now, there is a sense of urgency, a seriousness of purpose, lingering anger about the 2023 season, and -- though it goes mostly unsaid -- atypical speculation about what the organization will look like if the year does not go as hoped.

After an 82-80 season that GM Brian Cashman called a "disaster," managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner opted to keep his leadership team in place. This was a no-brainer on merit; no sane company would fire an executive after 31 successful years (the Yankees have not had a losing season since 1992). Plus, continuity has long been an organizational strength.

Cashman is beginning the second season of a four-year contract. There are close colleagues who speculate, without knowing for sure, that it will be Cashman’s last deal as GM of the Yankees (I’ve asked Cashman directly multiple times, and he neither confirms nor denies it, typically saying he doesn’t think that far ahead).

And while it is very difficult to imagine Steinbrenner firing Cashman in the middle of that contract, there is definitely win-now sense around here that makes one wonder what will change if the team does not make a significant October run this year -- and if Cashman and Steinbrenner will decide to think about a succession plan.

It’s also hard to imagine Cashman, 56, leaving an organization that he joined as a 19-year-old intern. But he’s not going to be the head of baseball operations forever. Members of his inner circle, which has been largely consistent for years, will also have to decide how long they want to continue in their roles. No one had fun in 2023.

The team is facing a more immediate decision on manager Aaron Boone, because his contract is up at the end of the year (the Yankees hold a club option on Boone for 2025, which means he is not currently signed up beyond this year).

Boone is not on thin ice with his bosses, who have privately expressed appreciation for how the manager helped stabilize the team last August and September, when the season appeared to be spiraling to an even darker place.

The front office believes that Boone had perhaps his best year in 2024, because of his steady hand amidst so much injury and underperformance. One could even go so far as to say that the manager saved people’s jobs by landing a faulty plane with a measure of grace. Plus, captain Aaron Judge remains in Boone’s corner, and Judge has Steinbrenner’s ear.

But having said all that, it’s one thing to not fire a manager mid-contract, and another to give him a new deal during a difficult time. This is why the Yankees should extend him now. But since they don’t do that sort of thing, the manager’s job could certainly be at stake this year (bench coach Brad Ausmus, by the way, was not hired to be a manager-in-waiting, despite his experience).

Yankees brass is clearly feeling pressure. Their offseason moves were focused on winning this year -- acquiring free-agents to be Juan Soto and Alex Verdugo, and ignoring old grievances with Marcus Stroman because they needed a pitcher.

They did not go so far as to trade valued prospects like Spencer Jones for one-year rentals, because Cashman will never be Dave Dombrowski, an executive typically willing to sell the farm for the present moment. But for him, this was all-in on the present, to a degree that must have made him somewhat uncomfortable.

The offense should be significantly better than last year, but the pitching upgrades have not quite been what the organization had hoped. That’s why the Yankees remain active on the free agent and trade markets, including on Wednesday, when they agreed to terms, pending a physical, with reliever Lou Trivino.

As currently constructed, the Yankees seem to have a high ceiling and a low floor. Would anyone be shocked to see Gerrit Cole starting Game 1 of the World Series, with Judge and Soto behind him in the outfield? Of course not.

But nor would it be stunning to see a rotation relying on health bounce backs from Carlos Rodon, Nestor Cortes and even Stroman -- and a bullpen that could use at least one more high-end arm -- struggling to keep the team afloat. Plus, the Baltimore Orioles are really, really good.

For the Yankees, there is a wide variance on how this season could go. And that means there is a wide variance on how it will impact the future of the most stable franchise in the sport.