New York Yankees fans react to Brian Cashman’s confidence that Aaron Hicks can still be a consistent starter: "Time to cut him loose" "Hahaha, no"

Aaron Hicks will be the New York Yankees' left fielder in 2023, according to general manager Brian Cashman. The news is not sitting well with the team's fanbase, who were hoping for someone else.

After a winter of watching the crosstown New York Mets make a succession of big deals on the free-agent market, the Yankees remained mostly silent. With the superstar free agents having long since signed elsewhere, fans of the Bronx Bombers continued to hope for a big-time acquisition to come via trade.

Those hopes appear to have been dashed after what Cashman told MLB Network Radio this week.

"I suspect he will be the only guy that emerges," Cashman said of Hicks in left field. "Hopefully, we can get the Aaron Hicks we know is in there back as a consistent player for us."

Needless to say, Yankees fans were not pleased to hear the news.

Aaron Hicks, acquired by the New York Yankees in November 2015, came to the team at a time of a crowded Bronx outfield. However, he found his way into the lineup spelling and replacing the oft-injured Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury, eventually developing into a solid starter in the latter half of the last decade.

However, he never seemed to develop into a Yankees regular and never worked his way into the hearts of the New York fans.

A player who never grew into the player that the Twins hoped for as a top prospect, Aaron Hicks provided occasional brilliance in his first few seasons with the New York Yankees. But he seldom found himself on the field consistently enough to be a long-term factor.

New York fans continue to wait to move on from their "Not-quite-a-Yankee" and hope that Cashman's quotes are merely a smokescreen. Hope and pray may be the right way to put it.

But, as with any debate, there's at least one Yankees fan playing devil's advocate when it comes to Hicks.

New York Yankees waiting a long time on Aaron Hicks

Aaron Hicks of the New York Yankees has ice poured on him.

Aaron Hicks has had his moments of brilliance for the New York Yankees. He finished 22nd in the American League MVP vote in 2018. However, for the most part, the player the Yankees have is the player the Twins traded after 2015.

Hicks has only managed to play more than 97 games in a season three times in a 10-year big league career. He holds a career batting average of .231, which doesn't cut it in Yankee Stadium despite his above-average defensive skills.

What do you think? Is Cashman really banking on Hicks to man left field for the Yankees in 2023, or is he just dressing up the outfielder for a move out of the Bronx?