{"id":106841,"date":"2022-10-24T19:54:41","date_gmt":"2022-10-24T19:54:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/yankees-offseason-to-do-list-has-many-items-but-aaron-judge-is-no-1-bowden\/"},"modified":"2022-10-24T19:54:41","modified_gmt":"2022-10-24T19:54:41","slug":"yankees-offseason-to-do-list-has-many-items-but-aaron-judge-is-no-1-bowden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/yankees-offseason-to-do-list-has-many-items-but-aaron-judge-is-no-1-bowden\/","title":{"rendered":"Yankees’ offseason to-do list has many items, but Aaron Judge is No. 1: Bowden"},"content":{"rendered":"
The Yankees were swept away by the Astros in the American League Championship Series and woke up Monday morning to the harsh reality that they have a lot of work to do this winter if they hope to close the significant gap with Houston.<\/p>\n
General manager Brian Cashman’s biggest offseason priority is no secret: re-sign Aaron Judge to a long-term contract after the all-world right fielder just completed arguably the best offensive season in baseball history. Judge bet on himself by turning down the Yankees’ seven-year, $213.5 million offer in spring training and now stands to make approximately $100 million more in free agency. He will be the top position player in a special free-agent class. Will he be back?<\/p>\n
Other key decisions await. Anthony Rizzo is expected to opt out of a $16 million player option for 2023, so first base needs to be addressed. The Yankees are expected to exercise right-hander Luis Severino’s $15 million team option, but will they look to further fortify the rotation? They will shed payroll in the bullpen next year with Aroldis Chapman, Zack Britton and Chad Green out of contract, but how do they bolster their diminished relief corps? Other impending free agents who are expected to depart include left fielder Andrew Benintendi and right-handed starter Jameson Taillon, though New York could try to re-sign one or both of them.<\/p>\n
In addition, this offseason the Yankees must improve their traffic on the bases at the top of the lineup, clarify what they want to do on the left side of the field (third base, shortstop, left field), and find a closer who can dominate the ninth inning like Chapman once did.<\/p>\n
Let’s look at each position, discuss the state of the organization and suggest some moves the Yankees could make this offseason to improve their team.<\/p>\n
The rotation is pretty set for 2023 with ace Gerrit Cole, left-hander Nestor Cortes, Severino, Frankie Montas and Domingo Germ\u00e1n all under team control. The Yankees have other options, including Clarke Schmidt, but they could use more starting pitching depth, preferably another lefty. The soon-to-be free-agent southpaw who screams Yankees to me is Carlos Rod\u00f3n, who had a banner season with San Francisco. As the clich\u00e9 goes, you can never have too much starting pitching, and Rod\u00f3n would be a game-changer for them. I estimate he’ll receive a four-year, $107 million deal on the market, so it would require a significant commitment from the Yankees. However, I think it’s more likely they put their financial resources toward re-signing Judge, addressing the back end of the bullpen and adding top-of-the-lineup players.<\/p>\n