Brian Cashman Jokes About A.J. Burnett’s Black Eye

Yankees pitcher A.J. Burnett conjured up memories of Miguel Cabrera when he showed up for his start on Friday night sporting a shiner. The flaky but talented pitcher went seven innings of three-run ball taking a no decision against the Orioles as the Yanks won 4-3.

Given Burnett’s inconsistencies this year (he’s 10-13 with a 5.08 ERA), GM Brian Cashman was unfazed by the black eye. Cashman said prior to Saturday’s game that Burnett “should’ve gotten it earlier. He pitched real well with it. I’m not worried about shiners. The guy was great. If he’s great with a shiner, go get another one. Maybe a couple of other guys on our staff could use one.”

Burnett flew ahead to Baltimore with his wife during the week so he was not with the team when they traveled to Maryland. There’s no word on how A.J. got the shiner, but knowing him there was some funny business involved. Remember a few months ago Burnett had to leave a start early after cutting his palms slamming the doors to the Yankees’ clubhouse. Burnett initially lied about how that happened, so we should not expect to get the truth of the situation.

Heck, maybe Cashman is right — as long as he pitches well with it what difference does it make? He’s still going to be considered a bust with the Yanks and that’s all that matters to me. Let’s be real though, the Yankees have a strong suspicion what happened here and have to be fed up with Burnett at this point. It’s their fault for pouring major money into a flake like him.

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