Marcus Stroman left Yankees with no choice but to trade him thanks to latest comments

Throughout this offseason the New York Yankees have made moves that they feel will put them in a position to successfully achieve a revenge year. After falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2024 World Series, Brian Cashman has had a little extra motivation this winter. 

The most notable addition the Yankees made was acquiring left-handed starting pitcher Max Fried who is already impressing his new manager, Aaron Boone. Fried’s presence in the Yankees’ rotation creates difficult decisions to be made. The organization was already considering trading pitcher Marcus Stroman but Stroman himself may have forced the hand of Brian Cashman to speed up the process with his recent comments. 

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Marcus Stroman leaves Yankees with no choice but to trade him

Stroman is coming off a mediocre season where he went 10-9 with a 4.31 ERA across 30 starts. Now that Aaron Boone has Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, Carlos Rodon, Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt, Stroman does not have a home in the rotation. 

Since Stroman is owed $18.3 million in 2025 and the Yankees have struggled to find a deal that allows them to dump his salary off their payroll, it would make sense to move him to the bullpen. However, Stroman has shot that idea down aggressively. 

When Stroman was asked about the potential of moving to the bullpen he kept his answer very simple: “I’m a starter. I won’t pitch in the bullpen. I’m a starter.” 

The selfish thought process and unwillingness to do what is best for the team Stroman has displayed leaves the Yankees with no choice but to trade Stroman away, even if they do not get what they are seeking out of the deal. The most logical fit is still for the Yankees to send Stroman to the Cardinals in exchange for Nolan Arenado but the St. Louis front office wants to decrease payroll significantly in 2025 and this would not allow that to happen.