We are less than two weeks away from pitchers and catchers reporting to warmer climes for spring training, but like most teams, the Yankees still have roster holes to fill. They’re still working out whether to add another bat, and they have holes both in the starting rotation and in the bullpen. They’re well into the luxury tax, too, looking at a payroll of more than $330 million, which means they’re likely to be economical whomever they decide to add.
But they are eyeing some more relief help, according to MLB insider Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Heyman writes that while the Yankees could bring back a bat like that of Paul Goldschmidt, they are also looking at a pair of relievers, including one that made four appearances in New York’s 2024 World Series loss to the Dodgers–Michael Kopech.
Writes Heyman: “Goldschmidt makes sense since the Yankees still aren’t sold on Jasson Domínguez batting right-handed and Goldy is better defensively at 1B than Ben Rice. The Yankees also have been considering Austin Slater and Randal Grichuk, righty-hitting OFs.
The Yankees also checked in on reliever Michael Kopech and starter Nick Martinez, among others.
Michael Kopech Struggles With Injuries, Control
Martinez was with the Reds last year and would be an interesting addition for the Yankees because he is one of the few true “swing” pitchers still in baseball, capable of starting or coming out of the bullpen, in the same season. He made 40 appearances last year and 26 of those were starts. In 2024, he made 42 appearances with only 16 starts.
But Kopech probably fits the Yankees’ needs better, a 29-year-old with experience who can be had on the cheap and still has some upside. Kopech is a hard-throwing righty who was a Red Sox first-round pick in 2014, and became something of a legend when he hit 105 mph on the radar gun in a minor-league appearance.
He’s struggled with injuries and control issues, and even as he recorded a 1.54 ERA for the Dodgers in the 38 appearances over the past two seasons, he has also walked 23 in 35.0 innings. He missed most of last season with arm inflammation and surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his knee, making only 14 appearances.
Yankees Not ‘Running it Back’
Of course, moves around the edges like Martinez or Kopech or even bringing back Goldschmidt would leave the Yankees open to one of the big criticisms they’ve faced this winter–that they did little to add to a team that petered out in 2025 and would be projected to do the same in 2026.
That was a notion that general manager Brian Cashman pushed back against this week in a meeting with reporters.
“It’s not the same roster,” Cashman said. “I disagree it’s the same team running it back. … Not afraid to run with the quality and talented roster of players that we do have. I think we’ve been consistent with that throughout the entire winter. I’ve been openly willing to challenge anybody that [says] we don’t have a championship-caliber roster and team.”
Yankees ‘Checked In’ on Hard-Throwing World Series Champ