MLB rumors: Braves trade dead? Yankees Cease backups, Orioles locked on ace

MLB Rumors: Yankees have backup plans if they miss out on Dylan Cease

The New York Yankees made one of the biggest splashes of the offseason by trading for Juan Soto but have done little else. They pursued Yoshinobu Yamamoto heavily but saw him sign a deal with the Dodgers. They acquired Alex Verdugo to fill their other vacancy. Most notably, the Yankees have yet to spend a single penny in the free agency market.

Following the Soto trade and the loss of Frankie Montas who signed a deal with the Reds, the Yankees have to address the rotation. As of now, they have four starting pitchers in their five-man rotation locked in, but even then, injury concerns revolving around Carlos Rodon and Nestor Cortes Jr. are real.

The easiest solution would be for the Yankees to just sign a free agent, but it's more complicated than that. Jordan Montgomery feels unlikely to consider a Yankees reunion based on everything that's been reported, and Blake Snell's asking price is outrageous. Turning to the trade market might be the Yankees' pathway to finding their arm, but the Dylan Cease asking price is said to be ridiculous as well.

If the Yankees fail to land Cease, they do appear to have backup plans according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale. Brian Cashman is reportedly looking at arms like Jesus Luzardo of the Marlins and Shane Bieber of the Guardians. Nightengale says the Yankees might even turn to Josh Hader to add to an already-elite bullpen. The prices for all three of those pitchers will be hefty, but likely less than imagining the prospect capital it'd take to land Cease. While it's unclear who the Yankees add at this point, it does appear that they're not done.