With the New York Yankees preparing to blow past the luxury tax threshold in a record-breaking scenario involving the best free-agent pitcher on the market, Gerrit Cole, it’s only fair to assume the starting rotation is going to be excellent.
A realistic contract for Cole would land in the seven-year, $250 million range, breaking $35 million per season and making him the most wealthy pitcher in all of baseball. However, owner Hal Steinbrenner believed his starting unit didn’t need the extra support — fast forward several weeks, and there’s a blank check sitting on Scott Boras’ desk waiting to be filled in.
The Yankees have been after Cole since 2008 when he was initially drafted in the MLB Draft, but elected to attend UCLA instead. He was then traded from the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Houston Astros in 2017, despite the Bombers’ interest.
Now, Cashman has a third shot at reeling him in, and it seems as if they are finally ready to put him in Pinstripes, which would bolster an already solid pitching rotation.
What would the New York Yankees starting unit look like?
The Yanks went a majority of 2019 without Luis Severino, their ace, and Jordan Montgomery, which forced them to depend more on Masahiro Tanaka, Domingo German, and others. The starters struggled for a majority of the season, needing ample help from the bullpen to smooth over rough outings.
Both Chad Green and Nestor Cortes Jr. were frequently featured in multi-inning roles to supplement the lack of capable starters. Factor in J.A Happ’s awful season and German being suspended just before the start of the postseason, and the perfect storm was brewing.
However, they’re in a position to piece together a stimulating rotation that’s preparing to welcome the best arm in baseball.
- Gerrit Cole
- Luis Severino
- James Paxton
- Masahiro Tanaka
- Domingo German
- Jordan Montgomery
- J.A. Happ
- Michael King/Deivi Garcia
This is an intimidating rotation for any opposing team. The first six pitchers are all capable of sub-4.00 ERA seasons and can dominate in postseason play. Steinbrenner has made reinforcing the unit a priority, despite blaming a lack of run production on the Yankees early exit from the playoffs this year. Nonetheless, with this grouping, the Yankees might only need to score 1-2 runs per game to edge out a victory.