It’s Not Too Late to Add ….

Pitchers and catchers have reported to New York Yankees spring training camp as well as a few positional players, the rest of the positional players are required to be in camp by tomorrow morning, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late to add talent to this team. It wouldn’t be the first time a nice complimentary piece was added to a team during spring training either via the free agent market or via trade and this year would be no different if the team were to add a starting pitcher to the rotation, a veteran catcher behind the dish or a left-handed reliever to compliment Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances and company in the bullpen.

The New York Yankees were linked to Jose Quintana all offseason long and as of the time of this writing the left-hander is still sporting a Chicago White Sox uniform. Reportedly talks took place between the two clubs but if I were a betting man I’d say the Chicago White Sox, who don’t tend to lose out on trades like these very often, are simply asking for too much or more than the Yankees are willing to give up. The closer we get towards though the more likely the price tag is to come down for Quintana which could work out in the Yankees favor. The White Sox want to maximize their return for Quintana so trading him now rather than in July could be the difference in a good prospect or two. Is a good prospect or two worth taking a little less than what they originally asked for or wanted? Well unless you have a crystal ball we will have to stay tuned for that one.

If Quintana does remain in Chicago a pitcher from that other Chicago team is still sitting out there on the free agent market in Jason Hammel. Now Hammel, unlike Quintana, is not going to be a game changer at the top of a starting rotation and the signing of Hammel would not leave many Yankees fans planning their 2017 World Series Champion tattoos just yet but he would be a solid pickup for the back-end of the rotation if healthy. The Yankees have a ton of question marks in their rotation, and admittedly adding Hammel likely adds another question mark to the pile, but if Hammel is healthy he can add a ton of stability and 200 innings out of the fifth spot that the team simply just doesn’t have right now with their current crop of players.

Finally the team may not be completely sold on having Austin Romine as the team’s backup catcher and the good news for the Yankees is that even this late in the offseason there is always a veteran catcher or two just sitting around hoping to get a call for a try out. Some of those names include Matt Wieters and AJ Pierzynski most notably. I’ll be completely honest here when I say that Wieters is not going to come to New York to be a backup, or anywhere for that matter, so it’s looking like it’s going to be Romine, Pierzynski or bust. I am about as excited by the idea of adding Pierzynski to the club as the next guy, the guy is a total tool bag if we’re being honest, but the amount of knowledge and experience he would bring with him you simply cannot overlook. What Pierzynski would do on the field is irrelevant when you consider what he could do for Gary Sanchez’s development. I’m about as excited as you are about the idea but for that reason alone I’d at least consider it.

Would any of these moves turn the Yankees into instant contenders in 2017? Well aside from Quintana, who absolutely would, I honestly don’t think so. Would it make the team better not only next year and beyond though? Well that’s hard to argue against.