Bomber Bites With Jumping Joe–What Is The Yankees Biggest Need?

The Yankees have a lot of holes to fill before next season if they want to get back to the playoffs, a goal that looks more daunting by the day.  First the Red Sox sign free agents Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval.  Then the Blue Jays trade for Josh Donaldson Friday night.  Meanwhile the Yankees have done very little this off-season.

Mandatory Credit: Chad R. MacDonald.

If one were to take a look at the Yankees by position, you can easily check off certain positions where no need exists. For example, with Jacoby Ellsbury, Brett Gardner and Brian McCann all signed to long term deals and all three among the better producers last season for the Yankees, you can cross center field, left field and catcher off a list of supposed Yankees needs. 

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First base, right field and the bullpen are the in between positions.  The Yankees didn’t get enough production out of first base and right field last season due to the injuries to Mark Teixeira and Carlos Beltran.  However, those two aging veterans are locked in for big money for two more years each so for better or worse they will remain in the lineup.  The bullpen at the moment lacks a closer.  Dellin Betances is expected to fill that position if David Robertson signs elsewhere, but he has no experience in the position.  In addition, should he become the closer, who will pitch the eighth inning?  Multiple questions exist about the bullpen, but it is not considered a key need to upgrade at due to the fact that the Yankees appear to have several options in Triple-A and others that have held over from last season.

Next we have the starting rotation, which would be a great place to upgrade, but is not exactly a major need.  If not for the level of pitchers on the free agent market this season, it would likely rate much lower on this list.  But there are a lot of big time free agent pitchers available this season via free agency and via trade.  The Yankees would of course be better off in 2015 if they signed a Max Scherzer or Jon Lester but that contract might look an awful like CC Sabathia‘s one does today in a few short years. The Yankees already have nice start to their rotation with Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda, Sabathia, Shane Greene and David Phelps with Ivan Nova available mid-season and Chase Whitley, Manny Banuelos and Luis Severino able to provide depth at Triple-A.

That leaves us with the real needs for the Bombers, third/second base and shortstop.  Third base and second base are lumped together here because one of the two will likely be manned by Martin Prado next season so the Yankees really only need to find one of the two.  The most obvious fill is for the Yankees to resign Chase Headley.  However, with other teams willing to give Headley four or even five years it seems increasingly unlikely he will return to the Bronx.  With no other real attractive candidates available, the Yankees may start the season with Prado at third and Rob Refsnyder or Jose Pirela at second.  At shortstop the Yankees have found the pool of potentials heirs to Derek Jeter extraordinarily thin.  The most likely scenario may be for the Yankees to resign Stephen Drew, who was bad on an epic scale last season or giving the job to Brendan Ryan with the hopes that he hits just enough to make his defense worthwhile.

The Yankees have multiple needs and seem unwilling or unable to fill many of them.  There is a lot of time before pitchers and catchers report in February, but as their AL East foes get stronger by the day it is important for the Yankees to keep pace if they hope to contend in 2015.