New York Yankees News: The pitching starved Yankees lose three more players

New York Yankees, Aaron Boone, Brian Cashman
Mar 23, 2019; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman (left) and manager Aaron Boone (17) talk prior to the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Yankees lost three more players today in the Rule 5 draft. Jonathan Holder went to Joe Girardi’s Philadelphia Phillies, Trevor Stephan went to the Cleveland Indians, and the Boston Red Sox picked up Garrett Whitlock, two of which are minor-league pitchers. With each passing day, the Yankees have fewer and fewer pitchers in both the Major and Minor Leagues.

The Yankees, so far, with only hours left to the baseball Winter Meetings Yankees have done nothing to repair a pitching rotation that is lacking Masahiro Tanaka, James Paxton, and J. A Happ, leaving ace Gerrit Cole with only baby bombers with little pitching experience in the Majors.

The Yankees will have Luis Severino coming back from Tommy John surgery. They may have Domingo German coming back should the Yankee owner believe he is a changed man after his year-long suspension for breaking the MLB’s domestic violence protocol. However, with both, they haven’t pitched in the majors for two years and one year, respectively. The Yankees really don’t know what to expect from either of them.

The Yankees need a number two or three starter, regardless of the two that will be returning, especially at the beginning of the 2021 season when Severino definitely won’t be available.

Before the Rule 5 draft, the New York Yankees did protect right-handers Roansy Contreras, Yoendrys Gomez, and Alexander Vizcaíno, being better prospects than the pitchers lost today. They also protected outfielder Oswald Peraza for being grabbed in today’s draft.

In the last few weeks, the Yankees have lost several free agents they were considering, most notably, Charlie Morton and Kevin Gausman, among others. They also lost a trade target, Lance Lynn, to the White Sox. There are sure to be other free agents out there that will be signed by teams today, before the end of the Winter Meetings; whether the Yankees will be involved in any of those moves remains to be seen.