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The holidays are officially in the rearview mirror and 2024 is upon us. This means baseball is right around the corner. Before that happens, though, a lot of MLB free agents need to find homes. One club likely to be active at some point before pitchers and catchers report to spring training is the New York Yankees.
General manager Brian Cashman has been working the trade market this winter. He’s reeled in the likes of Alex Verdugo, Trent Grisham and Juan Soto to bolster the offense. However, they haven’t spent any money on free agency thus far.
In a January 3 article from ESPN’s Jeff Passan, he notes New York is one of four teams that hasn’t signed a big-league free agent yet. They’re joined by the Chicago Cubs, Miami Marlins and Colorado Rockies.
This could change in short order, though. The Yankees came up quite consistently in Passan’s article. He mentioned them when talking about a trio of free-agent pitchers: Jordan Montgomery, Shōta Imanaga and Josh Hader. Passan also said the Marlins could be willing to part with starting pitcher Jesús Luzardo via trade. He suggested New York would be among several teams interested.
Which Free-Agent Hurler Could the Yankees Land?
Between Montgomery, Imanaga and Hader, it seems like New York is most interested in bringing back Montgomery. They drafted him in 2014 and eventually traded him to the St. Louis Cardinals at the 2022 trade deadline.
The Yankees pulled the trigger on the deal because they didn’t view Monty as part of their postseason rotation. But now, the southpaw is a free agent after winning a World Series with the Texas Rangers. It’s worth noting that New York’s interest in the left-hander isn’t new. Even while they were courting Yoshinobu Yamamoto, rumors linked these two together as early as November 23, per the New York Post’s Jon Heyman.
Imanaga could be the next major free agent to land with a team, but only because there’s a limit to his time on the open market. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand said the Japanese hurler’s posting window is set to close on January 11. With a slow-moving rotation market, he could be awarded a contract of at least $100 million, per Passan.
In a January 3 live stream for Bleacher Report, Heyman said the Yankees don’t love Imanaga because they view him as more of a fly-ball pitcher. Statcast ranked Yankee Stadium as the third-most friendly ballpark for home runs in 2023. So, it’s not hard to see why those thoughts could potentially lead to hesitation.
As for Hader, this also isn’t the first time the Yankees have been connected to the closer. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal mentioned these two as a potential pairing on December 17. The reliever is rumored to be looking to break Edwin Diaz’s relief pitcher contract record (five years, $102 million). New York is joined by the Rangers and Los Angeles Dodgers as those interested in his services.
Why Jesús Luzardo Would Be An Attractive Trade Target
If the Yankees are indeed not super high on Imanaga and Montgomery signs elsewhere, one would imagine the club would still like to add a starting pitcher. Even if Cashman decides to go the “super-charged” bullpen route.
Opting to find a match in the trade market makes sense, especially if a hurler like Luzardo is available. He’s fresh off tossing a career-high 178.2 innings in 2023 for the Marlins. It yielded solid results, which included a 10-10 record to go along with a 3.58 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 208 strikeouts.
The 2024 season will be Luzardo’s age-26 campaign. Spotrac notes he still has three years of team control remaining before hitting free agency. It’s easy to see why he’d be an attractive trade candidate. But it’s not like there wouldn’t be any competition for him.
Along with the Yankees, Passan mentioned the Boston Red Sox, New York Mets and Baltimore Orioles as potential suitors.
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