 First off, let me ask about DD had the surgery today. Were you given any time cable by the doctors on how the surgery went and best case scenario when he would get back? Surgery went out with no surprises. And anywhere from June to August, you'll be going with. It's an uncertain timeframe that way, because you have to play it out. But it could be sometime in June and July or August. We're just the way to see. So obviously, it's important how we strategize our next moves and our first guiding means will start next week, October 22, 3 and 4, and we'll work through all opportunities. And clearly, that'll be an important discussion when the best player now standing right now is Robert Torres. He's playing him over the next second. You go in for somebody else, you turn it over to the kids. You've got the powder rate on the roster. You've got the rounds for us as well. What do you do next? So we'll decide on that here as we move forward. Is this a killer for you in trying to put together the 2019 team? Yeah, you do have the options because Glaber came up as a shortstop. But you don't know if it's going to be a short time, June, or if it's a long time, August. And does that impact on how you solve this problem? No, I don't think so. We'll just try to solve it the best we possibly can and we'll look forward to getting into the meetings with our front office, our analysts, and our first cast, but we'll determine what the best idea concepts are and we'll come on the board and get them and try to prep them out. Now, moving forward, I know you can't talk about other teams, Pires, but let's talk about yours. Do you envision Greg Byrd being part of the team in Tampa trying to win a job? Yeah, if our roster stays as is, Luke Byrd can have an opportunity to reinforce what he just showed, which I believe was the best that moved at the deadline. And we would have saw that coming, obviously, with all the terrific players that had been moved. And then Greg Byrd showing an opportunity to resuscitate him and moving forward and finding a way to reestablish himself. So, you know, 2019's gonna be a whole new ball game. And so, you know, two people approaching it differently, one trying to reinforce this in real and the other one trying to show last year was 2018 season, whatever. Obviously, you said you're not only doubling down but tripling down on Gary Sanchez before the season ended. He had a pretty good postseason. Were you concerned about, you know, hitting under 200 and I think 17 pass balls? Did that give you some pause as you move forward? No, I believe in Gary Sanchez. It's clearly up to us to continue to find ways to unlock what he's capable of in 2018. Obviously, it wasn't what year we would have thought, but we know that what he's capable of doing. I'm already getting phone calls, to be honest. You know, club is trying to knock on our door to see if he's available and he's not. So, you know, that reinforces, I think, what people realize is stealing his capabilities and also the position weakness around the game at the same time. So, I think he will be a difference maker for us. We just have to, you know, find a way to get him back on track. I think he lost confidence over the course of the season and, but he did find his mojo again, I think, towards the end and then the second season, I think we started to see a more representative, accurate version of what he's capable of doing and you'll see that play out, I think, more so next year, of course. So, is that why you guys felt the need to actually say publicly that you're doubling down on him because you could sense that from a confidence standpoint, he could use it? No, just, I'll be honest with you, just answering the question honestly and, you know, I know there was a lot of... Oh no. Whether it's calling shows or in the media, you know, writing what they were forced to write by the performance. So, it was more dealing with, here's the question and I want to make sure that everybody understands that he wasn't really a subliminal message or direct message that he could hear or pick up because ultimately, all he was going to get back on track was, you know, impacting the baseball like he's capable of doing with positive results and then having him take that big exhale. He never admitted to lack of confidence, but I do believe that early on, the struggle was bad luck. And then that transformed into trying too hard, then it turned into a confidence thing. In my opinion, I mean, I'm right, the injuries hit and it just started to be a lost season, but you just try to focus on the second season where you could do some more damage. And he got back on track, I think, at the most important time and he called good games for us and impacted the baseball more like he's capable of. So I think you're going to see this guy return, but now I was just really being really honest about what I felt and hoping that, you know, he would prove it at some point, you know, that the patients on him was going to prove correct. I think now we'll have to wait further to get more reinforcement of that going into next year because he will be our catcher. Brian Casper, Yankee Senior VP and General Manager on the phone with us here on the Michael K Show. Brian, in the Yankees last game of the year, Miguel Andujor, who might be the American League rookie of the year did not play with CC on the mound. You put the better defender Walker in. Can we assume, moving forward, that you guys don't feel that great about him defensively as a third baseman and he could be moved somewhere else? Well, no, I thought he was going to be a other-day third baseman. I think we were just, you know, we were doing what we did once in the most important games. You know, what we're doing with CC every time you're in the mound, we're playing Walker. So of course, you do it different now. You know, there's a ton of ground balls that get moved to that side of the field. We did feel openly and I think declaratively when we traded for Drury in spring that we felt Andujor needed more development time. And that was not on the outside, it was on the defensive side. So I think we reacted as we stated, he showed that he was ready to be an everyday guy, regardless, does it mean the finished product? No, there's still growth, I think, on the defensive side, but his makeup's off the chart. So we feel like because of his makeup and his willingness to work and address issues and fight that he has a chance to reach that ceiling regardless. And so that means exciting times ahead for him and therefore for us. So, but at the same time, you know, and doing his stuff and of course to make tough decisions and the easy thing is to say, hey, you know what, we don't want to do that. It's not posted as much actively, but no, I think Aaron showed the strength to put out the best opportunity for us to win that day's game. And it was a necessary circumstance for us. And I thought he showed leadership by doing what was important to be done. And that was telling a young kid, we got the weight here and we're gonna let Walker play this one and just like he did the last two months of season. Severino was one of the top two or three pitchers in all baseball, first half, second half, it wasn't there as much. How Starburner was on with us about a week ago last week and said that, you know, we were battling him tipping pitches all second half. Is that alarming that it couldn't be solved over a full second half of the season, Brian? And is this something moving forward that's a big concern with Severino? It got solved and then it didn't and then it got solved and then it did. So it's something that, you know, I think, you know, we're very tuggly head every now and then. So I think it affected his confidence. I think that, I think he telegraphed some things. You know, he got out the gate so great. And then we ran to a club that he telegraphed and things too they had picked up on. And then I think that did affect him. And then he tried to fix it and their confidence wavered a little bit. But he kept battling through it at times. I think he fixed it and he got on track, but every now and then they see things aren't easy. We've dealt with them in the past and they do potentially rear their ugly head again. And then it happens. And so it's obviously an air of focus that we'll continue with and battle for because obviously if you're, no matter who you are, if your talent is in with the type of luck your stuff, he has, if they know what's coming, you're very vulnerable. Therefore, your club will be very vulnerable. So it's something we have to fix and get better at and contain. And so obviously we're aware of it, but being aware of it's one thing, solving it and putting it to bed, obviously it's been a challenge. Now, Luis put this to bed, but were you surprised when Pedro Martinez said on the TBS pregame show that he had been speaking with Severino and that Severino was actually hurt, but the eighties couldn't afford to shut him down because they were in a race. Yeah, I mean, I was surprised about it because obviously he's not getting any treatment for this stuff. You know, I don't know, so he obviously hand-checked it. And Pedro is from the Dominican Republic, there's a lot of things. Oh, you're always picking up on things and hearing things and we're unaware even to this day that if there was an issue that he had experienced and that it's not something he can, they do it. So we just got to fall back on how he wanted them to miss. You know, either if guys are hurt, just stop doing their side sessions in between to save bullets and allow them to play or you see, you know, like out to the parking in the post-season for the DH Damas might get them off his legs because they have three games in a row. So there's things you do to adjust if someone's still playable in a circumstance but not necessarily full strength. We didn't have to do any of that with study. And therefore that would reinforce that, hey, if there's stuff he'd hide in, you know, it's possible, but he never conveyed it to us. And if he did, we would have adjusted things along the way. Obviously, he reacted to it, we didn't. So at the end of the day, I'm not saying they drove wrong, but I have to just trust, you know, how the communication was with study to us, how he reacted with the natural and the strength and commission side, and it didn't deviate. So, you know, it appeared in his velocity was the same. So it just evidently appeared to be online. And I personally call back to the telegraph and the pictures at times, creating a compensation issue and fighting through it and battling through it and then focusing on mechanics more so than just going out and throwing. You know, I think we got out of track for a while and then we got him back on track. And then unfortunately, you know, that's where it's up their head again and then we go through the results. You said you have the Scouting Meetings next week. That being said, what's the main focus going into this, Austin? And what do you want to improve, Brian? First starting pitching, you know, that would be a main focus. Obviously, we have some pre-agency stuff going on with the bullpen. So that's probably going to be a focus, but pitching will continue to be a focus. And, you know, I think our position player crew is really strong. Obviously, we have to find a way to address, you know, the needy information. So how we react to that is yet to be determined, but what's the biggest priority of your pitching? Do you think you have to improve the offense at all? Record-breaking home run year in the playoffs. It wasn't there as much. Do you think that that has to be tweaked? I think we can tweak it by continuing to get some growth and address areas of weakness with individual hitters by how they respond in certain counts and what the circumstances happen to play out. We certainly are horrific with bases loaded this year. And I'll play through the procedure, too. But I think there's individual profile things on a unique basis that you're constantly attacking and there are deficiencies that need to be addressed and continue to be discussed and worked through with individuals that, you know, if you can tap into that and improve upon that, then, yeah, you're gonna get, you're gonna get, you know, more consistent or better results. But overall, from the offense standpoint, you got it for a really strong and dangerous and that there's holes that we can shore up. There's no doubt about that at the same time. You have a lot of potential free agents. Gardner has an option year. What are your interests with Gardner? How about CeCe and Jay Hap? Great, all great players. All to be determined. We have not our meetings. And then once we have our meetings, we'll make recommendations, honors shifts, and then we'll set the dance to and what we dance to. But all players you talked about, I've been impactful leaders and we're lucky to say that they have been Yankees and what happens moving forward still is you have to be determined, you know, because you have to get through our meetings and now that they're done, it's started yet. Any future for Jacobi Osbury with this team, Brian? Yeah. We're going to be healthy and back on track. You'll enter spring training and then we have player and, you know, I guess it remains to be seen, will he be, you know, a player that we can deploy as early as opening day, or is it going to need a little more time or not? But that's to be determined that, like, he was supposed to be fully recovered. And I was surprised after I saw him come out of the surgery. It was like within a week, I saw him, like, walking around and he was shocking. Amazing how today's medical world works, that he had a significant surgery that addressed a significant problem and we're hoping that we get, you know, the player that the people are doing, obviously, as soon as possible back, because he saw that when we were hurting early in the year, April, May, with injuries in the outfield, then late in the year, with injuries in the outfield, you know, we weren't running a pair of Jacobi Osbury's capabilities out there. We were up and we were on something lesser and, you know, obviously can get frustrating at times. You want to tap into the talent you have and feel it available to us, you know, obviously, the entire year. All right, two quick ones before I let you go. We've had Hal on a lot and, you know, you're marching orders this year, give us a contending team and get under the tax threshold. Mission accomplished, 100 wins, you lose in the division series and it was under the threshold. Now, Hal has also said, I don't think you have to spend over $200 million to get a championship team, but there's a perception out there, Brian. The Yankees are just gonna throw a lot of money at this and just to take the next step. Are the Yankees gonna spend, like they used to spend when George was around? That's been a constant question that's continued on a year in and a year out there. It's just because of who we are and the environment that we operate in. I think, you know, we've shown that we're a very disciplined operation. We're not perfect. We all make great decisions at all times. I think we have made consistently good decisions based on the process that have served us well and have been going a lot of that process to continue to play out and guide us and ultimately, you know, Hal's family and his family and make the phone calls, you know, we'll give them different lanes to drive in and they'll tell us which one they prefer based on the information they get provided. You know, we're a process-oriented organization and we just have to allow that process to play out. So I don't know if that means we're gonna spend a lot, spend a little. I do think that we improved this club significantly throughout the season. I mean, it was a great team that ended in 2017 that was significantly improved as of course of 2018. And I think that was done in big ways, whether it was spent in smaller ways with HAP or even a smaller acquisition, both that played in a big roadway and a considerably huge acquisition. I thought all of which combined would play well with everybody and lead us somewhere more than we wound up at. But I think those are all examples of manifestations of an effort of constantly addressing. Even the Heads of Area one, which no one saw coming, it was, it wasn't to address that area of weakness, it was more of a player available for $50,000 we can get in, you know, essentially imported in here and you'd be an upgrade on a lot of threats. And that would be the tenacity I would say that we strive to be every day of reinforcing every aspect of the club you possibly can. And you have tough decisions. It doesn't mean it's no matter what, you go get everything that's available. It's not possible. You have to weigh the acquisition costs, the financial ramifications, but I didn't tell you the process and the intent and the interest and the motivations are always there to find ways. This player that might be available in the trade of free agent market, is that better than what we currently have? And if the answer is yes, then what's the acquisition cost and then decisions get made according to it? And we try not to be emotionally attached to anything. We try to objectively say, is this gonna make us better and put us in a position to not be talking to you on the phone right now while the teams are playing. And so, yeah, we'll see where it takes us. All right, one final thing and I'm gonna try to be creative with this because I know you're a tough one when it comes to this, would you consider a player, Brian, that comes out and says, you know what, I just don't hustle to first base. I mean, is that, and if somebody's an otherworldly talent that doesn't run hard to first base all the time, would that be somebody that Yankees would wanna put in their clubhouse? Boy, you're really good at what you're doing. You're trying to get on my script and to answer any question that put me in the abyss that I know of these, so I'm gonna have to pass. But you know I'm not talking about a specific player, right, Brian? I just wish that we were in a position to be playing still. I guess that's the best way to end this interview and end up that question all together. All right, thanks Brian, I appreciate it.