Yankees: 3 surprise rival free agent fits nobody’s talking about

The New York Yankees are probably buckling down for a 2021-22 shopping spree, which’ll include a crown jewel of a shortstop, as well as pitching and bench depth.

Only the middle infield acquisition will break the bank, but, well…the money piles up quickly. $8 million here, $10 million there, and suddenly you’re looking at an additional ~$60 million annually, presuming the shortstop splash really is as big as prognosticators claim. Bottom line, the Yankees need to be prepared to go all in if they dive into the pool to grab Corey Seager or Carlos Correa, making a few of these $8-to-10 million free agents necessities rather than luxuries. No half-measures. Gotta go all in.

And with such a difficult makeover ahead of you, why not consider a few of the players you know very best for these roles? Your rivals take up a good deal of your attention already, after all.

Luckily for the Yankees, a few of their in-division rivals who just finished pasting them in 2021 are available for money alone this offseason, and might be squeezed out by their former teams, who have different concerns entirely.

We’re not touting these three options because the Yanks have to act quickly to secure all three. We’re just bringing up the fits because we haven’t seen them speculated about nearly enough.

Of course, if “killing the Yankees” was the only prerequisite for a free agent contract, we would’ve splurged three years and $120 million on Steve Pearce a long time ago.

When the Bombers look to fill out their bullpen or rotation at a modest price, they should probably turn their eyes to these players. When Brian Cashman tries to make the bench rotation more lefty-heavy, he should check out this option instead of just letting Brett Gardner fill out a blank check.

That’s all we’re saying. Let’s get the conversation going before we downvote.

These 3 rival free agents could be fits for the 2022 Yankees.

3. Jeurys Familia

Why even compete on Jeurys Familia if Steve Cohen’s just going to open up the coffer and dump cash on every available free agent, right?

…right?

Oh, that’s very much not happening? He missed out on George Springer and JT Realmuto, he’s more focused on building a casino at Citi Field, and he’s considering Chris Christie for the empty GM slot? OK, great. Seems good. Redefining ownership for sure. Stable organization over there.

Well, why wouldn’t the Yanks allocate their Darren O’Day/Justin Wilson money to Familia, then?

Still just 32, Familia’s coming off a three-year, $30 million, and he hasn’t done anything to earn a raise in that time. Maybe Brian Cashman should offer two years and a $7-8 million AAV? A little additional security, spiced up with the benefit of not having to move across the country might entice the righty sinker-baller to take a “hometown discount” on the other side of town.

Familia hasn’t been quite the same kind of monster since 2018, but he upped his strikeout rate in 2021, whiffing 72 men in 59.1 innings pitched. His elevated WHIP (1.416) created an FIP that indicates his ERA should’ve been worse than it was (4.40 vs 3.94). All indications are the righty is more of a sixth-inning guy than a closer at this point, but he’s a better option behind Clay Holmes/Jonathan Loaisiga/Aroldis Chapman/Chad Green than anyone else the Bombers assembled last year. Luis Cessa’s gone. Luis Severino should be rejoining the rotation. Michael King? Probably for multiple innings.

New York can get Familia at a semi-bargain. The Jeurys still out on whether they should.

2. Corey Dickerson

Remember when the Toronto Blue Jays added Corey Dickerson alongside Adam Cimber in a deal with the Miami Marlins midseason, and rumor had it Dickerson was just a throw-in and wouldn’t be able to return before the end of the season? Just a…salary-matching thing?

Well, smash cut to Dickerson raking (110 OPS+) north of the border in 46 games and becoming a key factor down the stretch. Cool how he was free of charge! Neat!

This offseason, the Yankees could rectify their Dickerson mistake and add him to the outfield rotation — with the benefit of the short porch — by outbidding Toronto, a team with many other concerns. Marcus Semien is departing. So’s Robbie Ray. Do the Jays want one or both back? Do they want to replace Semien with another high-dollar shortstop, now that Austin Martin is in the Minnesota Twins system? Lots of questions, very few answers that involve making significant time for Dickerson’s cash settlement.

The lefty swinger is coming off a two-year, $17.5 million deal, and could command something similar this time around. Unbeknownst to many, he’s actually been one of the more consistent bats in the game in this fourth outfielder role for the past several years. His only seasons since 2014 with an OPS+ below league average (100)? 2020’s shortened season in Miami (91) and 2021 (99, just missed it). At worst, Dickerson will likely be an average player for the next two years, but his ceiling is far higher, especially in the right envionment.

If you don’t think the Yankees could use a 115 OPS+ from the left side/off the bench to play ~100 games next season, you didn’t watch the 2021 team. We would’ve advocated for the acquisition of Dickerson midway through the season if we’d only known he was actually healthy and available. Now it’s time to rectify that mistake.