The Yankees will obviously make big plays for Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg this winter, but Brian Cashman will also shop for under the radar players.
When the Yankees signed DJ LeMahieu last winter it was hardly a celebrated move by the team’s passionate fan base. As it turned out, that was Brian Cashman’s best signing of the offseason. Look for New York’s front office to try to follow the same blueprint in the coming months.
That doesn’t mean the Yankees won’t aggressively pursue Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg, it just means that Cashman isn’t going to put all of his free agent eggs in one of those baskets. Instead, look for the organization to target some lesser-known free agents that they believe can make a big impact in 2020. Here are five under-the-radar free agents that could out-perform their profile and turn into highly productive signings for the Yankees.
5. Travis d’Arnaud
Catcher may not be a position of serious need for the Yankees this offseason, but it will become one if Austin Romine elects to leave via free agency. The idea that Kyle Higashioka will ascend to the backup catcher role unchallenged doesn’t feel like a move Cashman will make.
Bringing in d’Arnaud as competition could be a stroke of genius. He is an injury risk but he gave the Rays a solid season of production last year. He could even give the Yankees another power bat as evidenced by the 16 long balls he hit in just 351 at bats last season.
Gary Sanchez is a good bet to miss a stretch of time due to injury which means New York has to make sure they feel comfortable with their backup catcher. Taking d’Arnaud away from the Rays would strengthen the Yankees while weakening another team in the division. Signing him wouldn’t generate a lot of Hot Stove headlines, but it could add several wins to the team’s total in 2020.
4. Tanner Roark
Roark is not the bona fide ace that Yankees fans are dreaming about in free agency. Instead, he’s another option for the middle of Aaron Boone’s rotation. His ability to eat innings might really appeal to the Yankees’ analytically driven front office.
He wasn’t dominant for either the Reds or Athletics last season, but pitching to a 4.35 ERA in just over 165 innings is certainly respectable. If the baseball gets dulled down a little bit in 2020 it’s easy to envision his productivity enjoying a significant uptick.
Obviously, the need to sign a pitcher like Roark would go away if the Yankees are able to land either Cole or Strasburg for the front end of the rotation. If neither of those aces do end up in the Bronx, the organization is going to look to add depth to the starting rotation after the bullpen was counted on to pick up entirely too much slack last season.
Roark would represent a nice, safe option that Cashman could likely sign for an affordable price. The Yankees won’t go crazy by offering him a long-term deal, but something short at a reasonable number would represent good value for the team’s front office.
3. Julio Teheran
The argument for signing a starter like Teheran is identical to the argument for inking Roark. He simply represents a less-reliable option with more upside for Cashman to investigate.
The bad news regarding Teheran is that he no longer sports the electric velocity that made him such a highly touted prospect. Instead, he is now one of the only true sinkerball pitchers left in MLB. That could play really well given the small confines of Yankee Stadium.
On the other hand, Teheran does give up a fair amount of home runs, which could be a deal killer from Cashman’s perspective. The 22 long balls he surrendered in just over 174 innings in 2019 isn’t terrible, but that number could easily rise if he’s forced to battle against American League pitching for a full season.
The good news is that Teheran did manage to pitch to a better ERA than Roark did last season. If he could stay around his 3.81 mark from last year he could slot into the top half of the Yankees’ rotation.
The other big question regarding Teheran is what sort of deal he will be looking for on the open market. It’s possible he’ll be looking to be compensated as a No. 2 starter. If that happens, the Yankees will take a hard pass and move on to more affordable options.
2. Brock Holt
If the Yankees don’t bring back shortstop Didi Gregorius, they may be in the market for a utility infielder to round out their roster this winter. Holt could be the best player available who won’t bust Cashman’s payroll.
Holt might not be capable of playing shortstop, but he can play everywhere else in the infield. He also would give Boone another left-handed bat to deploy against difficult right handers. Brett Gardner was the only southpaw in the lineup on far too many occasions last season.
Holt doesn’t have much pop, but he is a solid contact hitter who gets on base at a respectable clip. His batting average of .297 coupled with his OBP of .369 would be welcome additions to the Yankees’ lineup.
The question for Holt to answer is whether or not he’s willing to accept a deal to serve as a utility player for the Yankees. That decision worked out really well for LeMahieu last season, but Holt could opt to sign with a team that’s willing to hand him the Opening Day starting spot at second base. Expect Cashman and his front office to at least sound Holt out about donning pinstripes in 2020.
1. Jake Odorizzi
Odorizzi represents the top of the “non-Ace” market for starting pitchers this winter. The Yankees wouldn’t acquire him to be a No. 1 or No. 2 starter, but he could be an above-average option as high as the No. 3 spot in the rotation.
His durability is an extremely attractive quality for a team that didn’t have much of it in the starting rotation last season. Odorizzi has thrown at least 143 innings in every season since breaking into the Rays’ rotation back in 2014. Last year’s total of 159 with an ERA of 3.51 would have arguably made him the Yankees’ ace based on regular season results.
The question with Odorizzi will likely come down to cost. Keith Law of ESPN.com speculates he could be in a position to ink a four-year, $80 million deal in the offseason. That’s only going to happen in New York if they strike out on Cole and Strasburg. The timing of those decisions could prove problematic for Cashman and his front office.
There’s zero question that Odorizzi can give the Yankees a big boost. If Cashman misses out on the aces available in the market, look for him to zero in on the former Twins star very quickly. He wouldn’t necessarily win the press conference, but he could win 20 games for the Yankees in 2020.