5 Yankees who are playing their way out of the team’s 2024 plans

Luis Severino, RHP

What would Luis Severino have to show you in August and September for you to even consider floating the qualifying offer to him this winter? That's ~$17 million for a one-year deal on his plate after his walk year went as poorly as possible. If he declines it, the Yankees receive a comp pick.

But ... why would he decline it?

Severino has expressed significant displeasure with the organization over the past several years, and the friction seems to go both ways (would they really have read a calendar out loud to, say, Gerrit Cole?). It would've taken a tremendous fall from grace for him to even consider a one-year deal in New York with multi-year money ahead of him this winter.

That fall from grace has ... happened. It has been tremendous.

If Severino rediscovers the hop on his fastball overnight, would you take the one-year risk? If he can put up three, four, even five quality starts in a row and get his ERA closer to 5.00 than 7.00, do you play with fire? Would signing, say, Frankie Montas to a bounce-back deal next season be a surer thing than Severino, at this point?

This process has gotten remarkably dark, and Severino seems to be eroding mentally as it proceeds. If a pitcher believes he is the worst pitcher in the game, it's unlikely he'll attack with the confidence required for the position. Severino needs a reset, and even affording him a courtesy one-year floater feels too risky.

Prior to 2023, it seemed likely he'd price himself out of the Yankees' budget. Now, they seem likely to constrict their budget to avoid his falling cost. How the tables turn -- in a way that, very unhelpfully, benefits no one.