Will he or won't he?

We spend so much time trying to read between the lines of executive-speak (or athlete-speak). Sometimes it's obvious, othertimes less so. So I spent some time trying to decipher Cashman's comments about whether he will return or not.

Cashman knows the Steinbrenner family wants him back. He has not yet made up his mind, but said he would decide well before Oct. 31, the date his contract expires. In 2005, Cashman waited until the final few days to decide.

“That’s not going to happen again,” Cashman said in a telephone interview. “That wouldn’t be fair to the Yankees.”
......
“We’ve had no negotiations,” Cashman said. “We’ll talk internally here, and obviously there will be a resolution to that probably sooner than later. That’s really the extent I can say at this point.”

Call me crazy, but I think there's going to be a quick "no thanks" and Cashman will walk*. I hope it doesn't happen as I still think Cashman's the right guy for the job (though we need some better scouts to help with player evaluation and more effort on development!). That advisory group that Hank alluded to must make Cashman's skin crawl.

But I think Cashman's leaving*. I hope I'm wrong.

* Here's my out: If Hal has a bigger role within the organization that it outwardly appears, Cashman will stay. In fact, if Cashman stays, I will assume this to be true. That's the only way I can see it happening.