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CARLSBAD, Calif. – Two years ago, the Yankees claimed to start pitching, and Chris Sale – an elite young pitcher on a team-friendly contract with the Chicago White Sox – was on the market.
But Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, despite a mine of promising but untested prospects, hesitated over the asking price, explaining at the time that the Yankees were not yet in rescue mode.
"Thank goodness, I did not do that, in fact, because you would miss some serious elements of our major league club right now," Cashman said Tuesday, revealing that he should have traded pitcher Luis Severino and another Star-sized player – Gary Sanchez? Aaron Judge? – in a package for sale.
He continued, "We could never have gone anywhere if I had done something like this with the White Sox at the time."
Now, however, all the ingredients are there for the Yankees to save their armored car, loaded with prospects or cash, to meet the same need to launch the launcher. The Yankees were conservative enough to be slumped under luxury last season, freeing them from painful penalties. They reached a series of American League divisions before watching the Boston Red Sox celebrate another World Series title.
But as his team's winter projects begin to unfold, Cashman clings to the new Yankee trait: restraint. Bryce Harper and Manny Machado – the jewels of this class of free agents – seem destined to land elsewhere, with the exception of the type of steep drop in asking price that saw Giancarlo Stanton give in to Cashman's feet last December.
The first moves of the Yankees this low season will not be more than waiting for a shrug in Boston, Houston or Cleveland: they brought back the CC Sabathia launcher, who agreed in principle to a contract from one year to an amount of $ 8 million Tuesday, and Private Brett Gardner, who last week accepted a contract that will bring him $ 9.5 million. (The Sabathia Accord, which was first announced by the New York Post, was confirmed by two knowledgeable people who were not allowed to speak because they had not been finalized.)
Sabathia is 38, Gardner is 35 and both are club leaders. But there is a reason for both countries to accept modest pay cuts: Gardner has collapsed enough for the Yankees to have had to buy Andrew McCutchen to replace him in late August and Sabathia has failed – for the second consecutive year – for more than three and a third of the heats in a playoff loss that eliminated the Yankees.
The next step in Cashman's to-do list is two other pitchers, left-handed J.A. Happ and Patrick Corbin on the list. Then find a stop to replace Didi Gregorius, who will miss most of the season after a Tommy John operation, or a second baseman to replace Gleyber Torres if the Yankees push him to a halt. And, finally, the fortification of the office, which has lost – at least for the moment – David Robertson and Zach Britton to the benefit of a free agent.
Cashman said he had a budget that he refused to disclose, but he admitted that the Yankees could exceed the luxury tax threshold, which will rise from $ 197 million to $ 206 million for next season. "Is this a definitive line in the sand?" Said Cashman. "I would not say that's the case, I would say it's a preference."
In his search for reinforcements, Cashman might be tempted to look around the city.
The Mets have of course two of the best baseball pitchers, Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard, as well as a new general manager at Brodie Van Wagenen.
But Cashman, who was frustrated at not being able to acquire Jay Bruce or field player Neil Walker when the Mets were landing veterans in 2017, said he understood that some teams had different trade. He doubts, for example, that the owner of the Yankees, Hal Steinbrenner, has agreed to sell one of his coveted surveys, Aroldis Chapman or Andrew Miller, to Boston in 2016.
"I'm open minded to do anything with anyone," Cashman said. "I'm not saying that my property would feel the same about it."
He added, "I'll check with Brodie here, see what they're doing, see if that fits. I doubt that you would see us doing the match, no matter, because of the story and what I have experienced in the past. If I was a new G.M. and I was not here for 22 years and I did not know the terrain, I might be optimistic. But I would not be optimistic. "
Many other teams are looking for pitching, including the Astros, who announced Tuesday that Lance McCullers Jr. was going to miss next season after being operated on by Tommy John.
But there are also many places to watch. Cleveland is willing to listen to the offers of two of its front-runners, Corey Kluber and Carlos Carrasco. And Seattle, who won 89 games last year but missed the playoffs for the 17th consecutive season, is open to James Paxton – and all the other players on his team.
"We do not want to be trapped in perpetual mediocrity," said Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto.
This is not a problem for Cashman, who seems determined to pursue the Red Sox in the same way he built the Yankees into championship contenders, with healthy and incremental moves – not with a splash.
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