Cashman: If Yankees resort to selling, 'I'll recommend it'

To sell or not to sell--that is the question. In the eyes of Yankees' principal owner Hal Steinbrenner, the decision on whether or not to sell at the non-waiver trade deadline has already been made up. But to general manager Brian Cashman, he'll make sure to voice his opinion if selling is a requisite. "We're in June, so right now it's not the conversation we're having," Cashman told ESPN's Wallace Matthews at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday evening. "(But) if we feel at a date in the future that is a necessity, then trust me, I'll recommend it. I'm always a brutally honest person." Even in late June, when the notion of moving pieces seems premature, Cashman believes that his roster has rallied, and with a handful of players producing on a daily basis, upward strides should continue.

"I've been saying—on several occasions—that this team is better on paper than the playoff team from last year," Cashman said to NJ.com. "We have to play to our capabilities. I think you're seeing examples of some guys now putting the cog in some really bad performance in April behind them and playing more up to their capabilities. It's just a matter of trying to get everybody firing on all cylinders at the same time to show this team's true ability. But, that being said, over time you eventually become what your record says you are. We feel we're better than this record." A Bill Parcells-esque answer, no doubt, but the Yankees (34-35) have only six weeks left to justify its record, or else the numbers will reflect a traditional seller.