Yankees: Five free agents they should pursue this offseason

The MLB offseason is in its early stages right now but in the coming days and weeks, the free-agent market will begin to heat up. The Yankees are one team that should be very active this winter so with that being said its time to take a look at five free agents we could see them pursue.

The Yankees came up short in October once again in 2019 and by doing so they finished off this decade without appearing in the World Series for the first time since the 1910s. Despite their 10-year drought New York’s championship window still appears to be wide open and in order to get over that hump, it would help if they made a big addition or two this offseason.

The offense surprisingly proved to be their main downfall during the ALCS loss to the Astros but I don’t think there’s any question that their most pressing need this offseason is still starting pitching. They need to add another front line starter to their rotation, preferably a clear-cut ace. The good news is there’s a handful of quality options for them to choose from and the hope is Brian Cashman and Hal Steinbrenner will be able to land one of them.

In addition to starting pitching the Yanks should also be looking to add a left-handed bat to what is currently a very right-handed heavy lineup. I think it’s safe to assume that Brett Gardner is going to be re-signed and return for his 13th season in pinstripes so for that reason, you won’t see him on this list. However, you will see one of his teammates who has been one of the Yankees top left-handed power sources over the past five years.

1. Gerrit Cole

The top prize on the free-agent market the Yankees and pretty much every other team in baseball would love to sign this offseason is Gerrit Cole. The right-hander will be the most sought after free agent starter in recent history and should break records with his next contract. The Yankees are considered one of the favorites to land Cole this winter, but that’s only if they’re willing to empty the bank and pay him whatever he wants.

The 2019 season was a historic campaign for the 29-year-old Cole and couldn’t have come at a better time in his walk year. In 33 starts he went 20-5 with a 2.50 ERA, a 0.895 WHIP and a major league-leading 326 K’s in 212.1 IP. He finished the season with an incredible K per 9 rate of 13.8 and had the most strikeouts by a starter in a season since Randy Johnson struck out 334 back in 2002.

His last loss of the regular season came all the way back on May 22nd against the White Sox and after All-Star break he posted a 1.79 ERA with 156 K’s in just 96.1 IP. In the postseason he further cemented his status as the best pitcher in the game by going 4-1 with a 1.72 ERA with 47 K’s in 36.2 IP.

The Yankees have been very hesitant to hand out mega deals to free agents over the past six years but this offseason there’s really no excuse for them to not go all in Cole. He’s as dominant of an ace as we’ve seen in quite some time and if they could add him to their starting rotation it would make them instant World Series favorites.

Cole was drafted out of high school by the Yankees back in 2008 with the 28th pick in the 1st round but opted to go to UCLA instead of signing with the team he grew up rooting for as a child. In 2017 the Yanks tried to acquire him from the Pirates but were unwilling to include Miguel Andujar in a package that also reportedly had Clint Frazier in it. This offseason landing Cole won’t cost them anything but money.

Many believe the Angels are the leaders to sign Cole because of his hometown roots in Orange County, California, but if the Yankees pay up they should have just as good of a shot at getting him. New York is in a much better position to win now than LA and after Cole came up just a win shy of winning the World Series he’s probably hungrier than ever to win a title in 2020. Coming to the Bronx would give him the best chance to do so.

3. Madison Bumgarner

According to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area, the Braves are expected to prioritize signing Bumgarner who could be looking to play closer to his home in North Carolina. The Yankees will likely prioritize signing Cole or Strasburg (worst case scenario) but if they can’t sign one of the aces they should definitely target MadBum. The four-time All-Star is a free agent for the first time after a terrific 11-year run with the Giants and will likely leave the organization after helping them win three World Series.

A pair of freak injuries limited Bumgarner in the previous two seasons but in 2019 he bounced back with a solid campaign going 9-9 in 34 starts with a 3.90 ERA and 203 K’s in 207.2 IP. Unlike Cole and Strasburg, the left-hander doesn’t have very overpowering stuff, but he’s still successful because of his ability to locate and mix all of his pitches.

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Last season he was hit as hard as he’s ever been allowing 191 hits, a career-high 30 home runs and an 89.4 AVG exit velocity (41.5 hard-hit%), but he should still get a nice deal this winter. He’s been in the league since 2010 but he’s only 30 years old and you can always count on him to deliver 200 innings plus if he can stay healthy. That should garner him a contract offer of at least four years with an average annual value close to $20M range.

Bumgarner has been one of the best regular-season starters in the game over the past decade but the main reason why he should receive plenty of interest from contending clubs this offseason is his impeccable postseason pedigree. The 2014 World Series MVP has already earned the title of greatest postseason starting pitcher of this generation and is arguably the best of all time.

In 16 postseason appearances, he’s 8-3 with a 2.11 ERA and 87 K’s in 102.1 IP. In the Fall Classic, he’s been unhittable going 4-0 with a 0.25 ERA in 36 IP with 31 K’s. He’s as clutch as they come when the pressure is at its highest and for that reason alone the Yankees should strongly consider signing him regardless of how unlikely that may be.

4. Didi Gregorius

One of the most interesting questions surrounding the Yankees this offseason is whether or not they will bring back shortstop Didi Gregorius. Didi is officially a free agent for the first time in his career after the Yanks declined his $17.8M qualifying offer earlier this month. After declining him the QO it might seem like the Yanks have closed the book on re-signing their shortstop of the past five years, but it’s still too early to tell.

Didi rushed himself back after undergoing Tommy John surgery last October to rejoin the team in June and that probably played a role in his poor play for most of the season. In 89 games he struggled to produce consistently and finished the year hitting .238 with 16 HR and 61 RBI and a career-worst .276 OBP. In the playoffs, he had an outstanding ALDS against the Twins hitting .400 with a home run and six RBI but he faltered in the ALCS against the Astros, hitting .213 with 0 RBI.

Due to his struggles, the Yankees clearly didn’t think Didi was worth a $17.8M salary next season and were afraid he would accept the qualifying offer. That would’ve given him an opportuntiy to rebuild his value and hit the free-agent market again next offseason. It would have been a smart route to go for Didi but he could still do that and return on a one-year deal, albeit for less money. A multi-year deal offer from New York, however, might be unlikely, especially after a down year.

The soon to be 30-year old has become expendable with Miguel Andujar and Gio Urshela returning and the ladder coming off of a career year. If the Yankees let him go they could easily shift Gleyber Torres over to shortstop and make DJ LeMahieu the starting second basemen. However, that’s somewhat concerning to me because Gleyber’s a much better defender at second and their lineup would then be even more right-handed heavy. Right now the current roster only features one left-handed hitter in Mike Tauchman that projects to be an option to start next season. Aaron Hicks is out recovering from Tommy John surgery and Brett Gardner is also a free agent, although again, the expectation is he’ll be back.

This past October showed how vulnerable the Yankees right-handed power hitters are against righty pitchers so adding another left-handed bat should be a priority this winter. Unless Brian Cashman can execute a trade there aren’t  really any free-agent left-handed hitters available that are better than Didi and in 2020 I’d bank on him having a nice bounce-back season at the plate.

The likelihood of him bouncing back and his lefty bat providing more balance to the lineup are two of the main reasons why I’d love to see Didi back. That’s in addition to him being a fan favorite and one of the top veteran leaders in the clubhouse. That might not factor into the front office’s decision to bring him back or not but it should. Didi has been a great Yankee over the past five seasons and a reunion with him for one more season still makes sense and would greatly benefit both him and the team.

5. Zack Wheeler

Last on the list is Zack Wheeler who is coming off of another solid season with the Yankees cross-town rivals. The 29-year-old’s 2019 campaign wasn’t as strong as his career year in 2018 but he still put himself in a good position to be able to cash in with a big contract in the coming weeks. In 31 starts he went 11-8 with a 3.96 ERA and 195 K’s in 195.1 IP. He averaged over six innings a start.

Wheeler finished the year very strong with a 1.85 ERA in September as his season was really a tale of two halves when you look at his splits. Prior to the All-Star break, he posted a 4.69 ERA in 17 starts but after the Midsummer Classic, he had an impressive 2.83 ERA in 12 starts. His performance down the stretch will lead to many teams showing interest in him this winter and the Yankees should be one of them if they miss out on Cole or Strasburg.

Wheeler has always had a great arm with power stuff and a lot of teams believe that he still has some untapped potential. Because of his upside, I’m sure there are clubs who would rather have him than Madison Bumgarner or some of the other top starters on the market like Hyun Jin Ryu and Dallas Keuchel.

I’d still go with Bumgarner due to his postseason track record but in today’s age of analytics, it’s easy to see why the right-hander is viewed in such high regard. According to MLB’s Statcast website Baseball Savant, Wheeler is considered a similar pitcher to Gerrit Cole based on velocity and movement so he has the repertoire to become a dominant ace as well.

For that reason alone he would be a welcome and intriguing addition for the Yankees and new pitching coach Matt Blake. That being said, he does have a lengthy history of arm injuries so they should be somewhat cautious about offering him a long-term deal.