From
Roger Rubin:
There's an avalanche of public sentiment that A.J. Burnett is neither living up to his contract nor deserving of a spot in the starting rotation. Yankees GM Brian Cashman Friday called fan reaction to the righthander's performance and the media portrayal of it "well overblown" and called the suggestion he come out of the rotation "a bunch of crap."
Cashman came to the aid of his mentally fragile $82.5 million investment just a few minutes after the righthander showed signs that rancor may be getting to him. Shortly before batting practice, Burnett mocked reporters for standing in the near-empty clubhouse and photographed them on his cell phone camera.
"The stuff on A.J. is well overblown," Cashman said during BP. "A.J. has been solid for us this year so I just think the way it's playing doesn't necessarily reflect how he's pitched. The public outcry recently - it's all emotion rather than actual.
How exactly is 8-9 with a 4.60 ERA from the 7th highest paid pitcher in the game "solid"?
"A.J. Burnett is not pitching close to as bad as people reflect. And they got him pulled out of the rotation - I just think it's a stupid reaction."
I figured there was no way the Yanks would bench their 16.5 million-dollar-headcase. This silly reaction from Cashman just back up that opinion. The bottom line is the Yankees should do what's best for the team and it should be Joe Girardi's decision and not Cashman's.
