Remaining Free Agents Who Make Sense for the Yankees

Tyson Ross

There is arguably no free agent left on the board with more potential to turn the Yankees into a legitimate contender in 2017 than Tyson Ross.

The most glaring hole on the current roster is the lack of an established number two starter behind ace Masahiro Tanaka. At the moment, the second best starter in the rotation is either CC Sabathia or Michael Pineda depending on your preference.

Ideally, neither guy should rank higher than third or fourth on the depth chart. The team has plenty of starting options in-house, but none of them realistically will be more than a useful back-of-the-rotation option (at best).

To have a chance to make a run next year, New York needs another frontline starter. In Ross, there just so happens to be a potential ace in his prime still on the market who would presumably be open to a one-year contract because of his injury concerns.

The 29-year-old made just one disastrous start in 2016 because of a persistent shoulder issue, but underwent thoracic outlet surgery in October to address it, and will reportedly be ready to go by April assuming he suffers no setbacks.

Just one year earlier, Ross put up a 3.26 ERA and 2.98 FIP in 196 IP, striking out 25.9% of the batters he faced and walking 10.9%. That performance was no fluke either, as Ross put up similar numbers in the 2014 season, earning him his first career All-Star nod.

Ross is an especially great fit for the Yankee Stadium because he’s a sinkerballer who is one of the best in the game at keeping the ball in the ground when he’s right (60.8 GB% in 2016, compared to 46% league average). A one-year pact in the $10-15 million range should get it done at this point because of the injury risk.

I know it’s not my money, but it seems like the payoff from that relatively small gamble (for an MLB team) would make that a pretty smart investment.