Quick Hit: Free Agent Starting Pitching Clearance Carts

The New York Yankees are a franchise that tends to contradict themselves, especially when it comes to the whole hot stove and free agency market. One minute Bubba Crosby is the Yankees starting center fielder and the next Johnny Damon is shaving that ridiculous long hair and beard and flashing peace signs in a Yankees uniform. One minute the Yankees are looking to add a starting pitcher to their rotation for some stability and innings and the next the rotation is full and so full in fact that the Yankees are looking and willing to trade away Ivan Nova one year away from free agency. Who knows what is going on inside Brian Cashman’s head right now and what’s going on in Hal Steinbrenner’s wallet pocket right now but if they need me to lay out a few bargain basement signings for them I will, and I will right now in fact.

Cliff Lee would pitch again in 2016, and has been cleared again to pitch in 2016, for the perfect fit. The Yankees have the innings to give him and they have the need for a veteran left-handed starting pitcher on a short one-year deal worth chump change as far as MLB starters are concerned and that’s all Lee is likely to command. Lee undoubtedly wants to win and with a healthy and effective Lee the Yankees can do just that. Lee is Plan A.

New York has three “Plan B’s” in Tim Lincecum and Doug Fister and they all fit the same mold. They can start or they can relieve. Both of them remind me of what the team traded away this winter and have yet to replace, Adam Warren. Any of these men could be a safety net for the rotation and none of them will require salaries that would come anywhere near that of Jordan Zimmermann, David Price or Zack Greinke.

With every Plan A and Plan B comes a Plan Z and the Yankees have two of them. Mat Latos and Aaron Harang. Both struggled mightily in 2015 in the National League and both are likely to command minor league deals only in 2016, if anything. If the Yankees feel like they need more Triple-A insurance, sure sign them. If not, no thank you.

Frank Wren the next Yankees GM?

Let’s be unrealistic for a second here and consider just what would happen if the New York Yankees were to not bring back Brian Cashman after his contract expires after this season. New York has already announced that they were going to tender Cashman a contract to keep their GM in the Bronx for at least another season but what if Cashman declined it? What if the Yankees changed their mind? Would the recently fired Frank Wren of the Atlanta Braves make sense in New York?

Wren has his faults like any other GM but he definitely made his name on building the farm system and by specifically developing starting pitching. Wren was not afraid to lock up his young talent in Craig Kimbrel, Jayson Heyward, and others either which is something we see far too little of in New York lately. Sure Wren gave a big money extension to Dan Uggla and gave even bigger money to BJ Upton after a career year but his track record, albeit in a shorter sample size, looks more hit than miss in Atlanta.

I personally think Wren got a raw deal after his pitching staff was decimated by injury all season long. Wren went out and acquired the likes of Ervin Santana, which was a no brainer, and Aaron Harang, which carried them at the beginning of the season, late to bolster his team. One thing about Wren was he was not afraid to make a move and aggressively improve his team. It is also noteworthy that Wren did not sell off any of his top prospects out of the farm system either while getting the better end of the Justin Upton trade with Arizona.

I think I speak for everyone when I say that Wren would be a sight for sore eyes in New York and may be, faults and all, the GM that the FANS have been screaming about for a long, long time. 

News For Prospect Huggers

A couple bits of news...

1. Dellin Betances has been called up to take Brett Marshall's spot on the roster. This move is surely in response to Marshall throwing 5.2 innings yesterday, and likely being unavailable for a while. I'm sure people are intrigued by this move, but they shouldn't be excited. Dellin currently has an ERA of 5.40 in 8 AAA appearances this season, as he hasn't been able to control his pitches.

2. Aaron Harang has been scratched from tonight's start due to having a stiff lower back. Prospect huggers will be happy to know that in his place the Mariners will start Hector Noesi, who was part of the big Montero/Pineda trade last year. Noesi has appeared in 4 games this season, all as a reliever. As a starter in his MLB career, Hector's ERA is 6.40.