Yankees Should Stay Far Away from These Three Free Agents

The New York Yankees should avoid these three big-name free agents in their search to upgrade the 2017 roster this winter.

A rebuilding team needs to be especially careful when adding veteran free agents, especially when they are operating on a budget, as the New York Yankees clearly are this winter. The team seems likely to have just enough payroll room to an add an arm or two via free agency this winter and maybe a bat if we are lucky.

The 2017 club could be better than many fans think if certain things break the right way, but choosing the right veteran reinforcements during the offseason could be one of the key determining factors in whether or not the Yankees are contenders this year.

There are some interesting buy-low opportunities available on the market, but also many mediocre talents who are going to be vastly overpaid because of a fluky 2016 performance.

The most egregious example of this is Ivan Nova, who is ranked 10th on MLB Trade Rumors list of the 2016-2017 Top 50 Free Agents and is expected to sign in the neighborhood of four years and $52 million this winter.

After missing the majority of the 2014 season to Tommy John and being terrible for most of 2015-2016 with the Yankees, Nova is set to cash in with one of the biggest deals of any free agent because of 11 strong starts with Pittsburgh. The only reason he’s not one of the top three guys New York should avoid is because I know Brian Cashman is far too smart to fall for that nonsense.

These other three free agents have been suggested as potential fits for the Yankees by other analysts, but seem like potential clunkers who could turn back into pumpkins after signing.