Brewers' Pat Murphy apologized to Yankees' Brian Cashman over viral comment about Jake Bauers free agency

In the aftermath of the World Series championship, Brewers manager Pat Murphy was caught on a hot mic talking to first baseman and NLCS MVP Jake Bauers, who heads into free agency this winter off a career year.

Murphy's message? "You're gonna be a rich f---er, but just remember when you were on that horseshit Yankees team and you guys were all playing for yourself, just remember, say, 'this is the way we used to do it.'" 

The comment, predictably, drew backlash from those who assumed Murphy was taking a shot at the Yankees. Bauers was on the 2023 Yankees, when they went 82-80 and missed the playoffs. 

"I called Brian Cashman right away when I heard it got out," Murphy said on the New York Post's "The Show with Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman released on Tuesday. "I picked up a phone and called Brian right away, and had a good conversation. And the best I could try to explain that I wasn't talking about the 2026 Yankees.

"After every celebration, I'd shake his hand. I'd say, 'You rich so-and-so, you're going to leave us,' " Murphy explained. "We're not going to be able to pay you. You're going to leave us and you're going to forget all about how we did things. … I would just give him this rhetoric every time.

"I was just referring to the teams that have a lot of high-paid, long-contract players," Murphy said. "That sometimes it's harder to get all those guys together to play together. And I used the Yankees because I knew Jake was with them before. … I regret saying it, but that was Jake and I's humor behind the scenes and I got caught." 

A few things here. 

First off, dudes talking to dudes when they don't realize anyone else is listening lends itself to a lot of comments they don't necessarily mean or, perhaps more importantly, don't include the context of a longstanding relationship between a manager and his player. There isn't anything really out of line here in terms of the Yankees shot. Any Yankees fan would tell you they agree with Murphy's assessment of that team. 

Where I do believe there's a problem is the insinuation that a player getting a huge payday means that he'll just start playing only for himself instead of doing things as a team. The Dodgers' high individual salaries certainly didn't stop them from winning two straight World Series titles.

Further, Bauers made $2.7 million last season, double his previous high. MLB players have a finite shelf life and need the money they make to stretch, if they're lucky, for generations. He's set to make exponentially more in free agency in his one big payday to hopefully set up his family for decades. Some might think it insensitive of Murphy to mock that a player might need to look out for himself and his family. 

Then again, take note of Murphy's quote when he says that's just their sense of humor. We don't know their personal relationship because it is just that: personal. Unless Bauers signs elsewhere and comes out guns blazing against Murphy, this whole thing is probably just much ado about nothing. It would be pretty shocking if Cashman took particular offense, either. 

Welcome to the offseason.

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