Was the Yankees Offseason Enough?

I remember watching the last play of the 2015 World Series and immediately wondering about what moves the Yankees had waiting in the wings. After an offensive flatline in the American League Wild Card game that terminated the Bombers’ postseason, there wasn’t much left for Yankees fans to be enthusiastic about. Following nine innings of futility, the team had slipped into the offseason with a bitter taste in their mouths and a fan base craving sparkling additions under their holiday trees.

But did the Yankees front office do enough to return the pinstripes to the postseason?

In an offseason best filed under “quality, not quantity,” Brian Cashman brought only three noteworthy names to the Yankees roster.

The first major recruitment to the Bronx was Minnesota outfielder Aaron Hicks, who was exchanged for backup catcher John Ryan Murphy last November. As Sweeny Murti noted, baseball insiders believe that Hicks carries undiscovered potential. Hopefully so, but at the very least heading into Spring Training his value resides in his capability of playing all three outfield positions and giving the veteran starters some days off. Hicks’ defensive versatility and skills–combined with his switch-hitting ability–poise him to be an upgrade over last year’s revolving Chris Young platoon against southpaws. At the time that Hicks was acquired, Brett Gardner trade rumors were still rampant and it seemed all but certain that the homegrown outfielder was on the move. Obviously this was not the case, but if Hicks has a breakout 2016 he could certainly leave the Yankees’ brass with some tough decisions.

The next chronological newcomer, second baseman Starlin Castro, was a solid Winter Meetings deal for the Yankees that shipped Adam Warren to the Chicago Cubs. Perhaps I’m irrationally excited about the Castro trade, but the presence of a contact hitter with double-digit home run pop is a refreshing sight following the plug-ins that the Yankees have thrown at second base since Robinson Cano‘s departure. Castro’s downfall has been his year-to-year inconsistency, but he found success in a small sample size following a transition over from shortstop. With a lesser role in the lineup and more reps at his new position in Spring Training, look for Castro to be a bounce-back candidate from his lackluster 2015 season.

Lastly, the most surprising trade of the winter brought flamethrower Aroldis Chapman to New York for a handful of pedestrian prospects. Chapman was an absolute steal for the Yankees from a pure baseball perspective and represents an upgrade for a bullpen that already had a dominant back-end last season. But it’s hard to top a guy that throws a 103 mph fastball and possesses two filthy off-speed pitches that keep batters looking ridiculous at the plate. If (and it’s a really big “if”) the starting rotation can hold together and push the team to the postseason, the three-headed monster caged in the pen could turn the Yankees into World Series contenders.

Admittedly, it wasn’t the offseason I thought it would shape out to be. With Gardner and Andrew Miller trade rumors swirling about and Cashman’s hunt for a controllable starting pitcher, it seemed like an earth-shattering roster shake-up was in the cards. Even though that didn’t happen, the Yankees managed to find a quality outfielder, a long-term solution at second base, and one of the top closing pitchers in all of baseball. And they did it all with Aaron Judge, Jorge Mateo, and Greg Bird still dwelling in the organization. If you told me prior to the offseason that the Yankees would finagle all of those trades without giving up at least one in that list, I would’ve laughed you to the grave. But they found a way and pulled together a creative series of moves that gives fans something both short and long-term to be excited about.

What do you think of the Yankees offseason moves? Let us know in the comment box below!

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