New York Yankees unlikely to pursue top free agent pitchers

The New York Yankees will likely shop for bargains this off-season in free agency rather than chasing the top available starting pitchers.

This year’s free agent market is going to be full of options for MLB teams that are seeking help for their starting rotation. That includes big-ticket pitchers like Max Scherzer, Jon Lester, and James Shields.

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Any time players of that caliber are set to hit the open market, the New York Yankees are one of the first teams that come to mind as possible landing spots. Look no further than the 2014 off-season in which the Yankees signed Carlos Beltran, Jacoby Ellsbury, Brian McCann, and Masahiro Tanaka.

So would the Yankees pursue one of those aces in free agency? It is unlikely given the current state of affairs in New York. Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes the following:

"For example, with the long-term pacts for CC Sabathia and Masahiro Tanaka having become bad or worrisome, I strongly believe the Yankees will ignore the Scherzers and Lesters and bring back McCarthy or someone like that and hope for a repeat in results. The Yankees, in many respects, are Example A that you can find starting pitching and survive, having lost 80 percent of their rotation for a long stretch, yet continuing to pitch well enough to win."

I’m not sure that Tanaka’s deal qualifies as bad or worrisome just yet, though it is likely that the Yankees are concerned about his elbow moving forward. As for Sabathia’s deal, that is certainly a problem around which the Yankees will have to work in the coming season.

Given McCarthy’s success in a brief stint in the pinstripes, it makes sense that the Yankees would target him first. From there, the Yankees will likely take a look at other bargain options while hoping to piece together a competent 2015 rotation with depth and improved health.

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