MLB New York Yankees

New York Yankees Should Spend Big on Rotation this Offseason

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By @chriswgamble

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The New York Yankees are entering the 2015 offseason trying to avoid a third straight season of missing the playoffs. General Manager Brian Cashman has been re-signed and has a tough task ahead of him: the Yankees’ rotation was decimated by injuries in 2014 with four of five starters going down. The 2015 season doesn’t figure to be without its own question marks either which means the rotation should be, aside from finding someone to play shortstop, the Yankees’ priority this offseason.

Right now, there isn’t a single rotation spot that doesn’t come with a question mark. C.C. Sabathia is coming off of knee surgery and hasn’t been the same in two years due to a variety of issues. Hiroki Kuroda is a free agent and is mulling retirement or a return to Japan. Ivan Nova might not be back until June or later after Tommy John surgery. Shane Greene performed well as a rookie but needs to continue to progress. Brandon McCarthy is a free agent with a history of shoulder issues. Masahiro Tanaka had a slight UCL tear and could either be fine or be one pitch away from Tommy John. Michael Pineda was dominant but missed three months. Even David Phelps had injury issues last season.

While the Yankees’ offense was terrible there are at least some options to improve. The rotation, on the other hand, is a mess. With Jon Lester, Max Scherzer and James Shields hitting the free agent market and representing the best three free agents in general you can believe the Yankees will be interested in at least one of them. Lester makes the most sense. Right now, the Yankees’ only left-handed starter is Sabathia. Who knows what Sabathia will bring this season?

Lester could form a 1-2-3 punch with a hopefully healthy Pineda and Tanaka that would give the Yankees one of the best rotations if healthy. Even a slight return to the old C.C. would make that a formidable rotation. Add in McCarthy, Greene or Phelps as the fifth starter and suddenly there is some depth there. Not just depth but quality depth.

If the Yankees were in an optimum position this offseason they would grab a pitcher and probably Nelson Cruz and Hanley Ramirez to bolster the offense. That isn’t going to happen unless Hal Steinbrenner wins a few Powerball jackpots. The Yankees have too much money tied up in Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, Brian McCann, Jacoby Ellsbury, Brett Gardner and Carlos Beltran. Only Gardner is someone other teams would be interested in when you look at performance and contract. The others, well the Yankees have to hope for some return to form.

The lineup has questions but fewer than the rotation when you take into account overall health. Teixeira and Rodriguez are question marks but Martin Prado and re-signing Chase Headley could give the Yankees plenty of options at first and third in case Rodriguez and Teixeira break down.

The DH position will be a revolving door to give Beltran, Rodriguez and Teixeira days off, at least in the field. Despite the struggles, and the struggles were mighty this past season, the offense might be in better shape than the rotation. That is where the Yankees should focus on landing the big fish this offseason.

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