The New York Yankees are keeping a close eye on the postseason for rebuilding purposes. The Yankees could be willing to expand their already bloated pay roll this offseason and they might be targeting a few names making noise in the playoffs. With doubt surrounding their infield along with their pitching rotation, who is moving to the top of the list for the Yankees?
According to ESPN's Wallace Matthews, the Yankees are expected to bid on current Mets standout Daniel Murphy, especially after his big postseason performances. The infielder has been stealing the show homering off the big arms of Clayton Kershaw, Zack Grienke and Jake Arrieta. That type of production will be hard to resist for a team in desperate need of a second baseman. With Stephen Drew out in the offseason, Murphy is the ideal replacement for next year.
The concern will be contract demands. Of course a big playoff performance means a bigger demand of money and Murphy will be no exception. Rant Sports predicts Murphy could demand a deal upwards of four years and $50 million. That would mean the Yankees have more contracts to players over the age of 30 than under. The example of Chase Headley should be reason enough for the Yankees to be cautious in their pursuit of the star.
New York will look closely at pitching for next season considering more of their starters have question marks above their head than not. CC Sabathia has entered a rehab treatment. Ivan Nova is still dealing with the lingering issues of Tommy John surgery. According to ESPN's Andrew Marchand, Masahiro Tanaka has undergone surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow. The reported recovery time is six weeks for the pitcher followed by a throwing program which means Tanaka will be ready for next season, but if it goes anything like this year, he will start slow.
According to the New York Post, the Yankees will chase one big arm this offseason. Johnny Cueto, David Price, Greinke and Jordan Zimmermann will all be available for the team to chase. It is expected that the Yankees will explore trade deals for Nova at the least considering his drop off this season. There is no indication of what the team will do with Sabathia who is finishing out his big contract. Replacing either player with someone like Price or Cueto could be huge for the Yankees to pair with Tanaka and Luis Severino for next season.