Yankees need to stay far away from Zack Greinke

The Yankees are evaluating a number of potential ways to improve their starting rotation, but Brian Cashman should not move for Zack Greinke. 

Zack Greinke has easily been one of MLB’s top starting pitchers over the last decade. That doesn’t mean he’s the cure for what ails the Yankees rotation. In fact, Brian Cashman should stay far, far away from the Diamondbacks right-hander.

The news that Arizona has been “extensively shopping” the 35-year-old ace will certainly cause Yankees officials to consider making a move for Greinke. Unfortunately, there are a multitude of reasons Greinke moving to the Bronx is a bad idea.

The most obvious concern about Greinke’s fit with the Yankees is his history with anxiety. Moving to the biggest media market in baseball would only exacerbate those issues. It’s possible Greinke could manage his symptoms well enough to pitch at a high level in New York, but there’s too much risk there from the Yankees’ perspective.

Even if you’re inclined to believe Greinke can hold up mentally there are serious concerns about whether or not his physical skills will hold up. He’s already thrown over 2,660 innings during his 15-year career. That includes eclipsing the 200-inning mark in each of the last two seasons. At some point, that’s going to catch up to Greinke.

The fact he’s already 35 years old also means his performance should decline sharply over the next several seasons. That makes his massive contract a negative for the Yankees. His current deal runs through 2021 and will pay him over $95 million in guaranteed salary. Cashman isn’t under strict orders to stay under the luxury tax next year, but adding a massive contract like Greinke’s would restrict what other moves the Yankees could make this winter.

The only way acquiring Greinke makes sense for the Yankees is if Arizona is truly determined to give him away for almost nothing. There’s no reason the Diamondbacks should be that desperate. Yes, moving Greinke’s salary this offseason is important to the team’s bottom line, but they also need to make sure they don’t deal their ace from a position of weakness.

If the Yankees are going to move for a Diamondbacks starter from 2018, it should be Patrick Corbin. He’s five years younger than Greinke and he had a better season in almost every statistical category. He lacks Greinke’s track record, but the Yankees wouldn’t need to give up any prospects to get him.

Even though Cashman should avoid dealing for Greinke, it doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be active in trade talks with Arizona. Paul Goldschmidt isn’t a perfect fit, but he’d be a massive upgrade for New York at first base. Andrew Chafin is also a really interesting option to add to the Yankees bullpen. The Diamondbacks haven’t shown any interest in moving him, but he’s exactly the sort of player Cashman should be working the phone lines to acquire.

The idea of bringing Greinke to the Bronx might seem intriguing at first, but he’s just got too many red flags. Cashman must resist the temptation to add him to Aaron Boone’s rotation.