The Yankees will touch down in San Diego for the Winter Meetings on Sunday with multiple areas that need improvement.
While bringing back Aaron Judge is the main focus and provides most of the headlines, Brian Cashman has plenty of other items on his to-do list for a franchise that has now gone 13 years without a World Series appearance.
Even with Judge’s heroics and the historic start to the season, the Bombers once again fell short of the ultimate goal. And after losing to the Houston Astros for the fourth time in the postseason since 2015, the Yanks have plenty of areas that can be upgraded.
In addition to bringing their franchise player back to the Bronx, here are three key areas the Yankees must look to address this offseason.
It may seem odd as Jose Trevino did just win the platinum glove award, however, the Yankees need to address areas where they are getting poor offensive production as they had way too many of them last season.
With the automated strike zone rumored to be nearing, framing may soon be a lost art. Looking to the available free agents and trade targets, the Bombers should strike and upgrade one of their net-negative offensive positions.
Willson Contreras is the top free-agent catcher on the market and the Astros are rumored to be one of his top suitors — giving all the more reason for a Yankee pursuit. The 30-year-old posted 22 homers with a .815 OPS last season.
While the free agent list for backstops is scarce, the top available catcher of the offseason is available via trade. A’s catcher Sean Murphy could be the next player on the move out of Oakland.
The 28-year-old slashed .250/.332/.426 with 18 homers and 66 RBI. If Cashman doesn’t want to lose much defense but upgrade offensively, Murphy may be the guy.
The Bombers are currently without a left fielder and have been since Andrew Benintendi went down with a hamate injury in August.
Rookie super-utility man Oswaldo Cabrera ended up playing left field in the postseason which only showed how much the team missed Benintendi when it counted.
There are three sensible free-agent options for the Yanks to fill their need. Benintendi — who still remains as potentially the best fit for their club, Japanese sensation Masataka Yoshida and Brandon Nimmo of the Mets. All three are lefty bats which is something Cashman must prioritize.
An unexpected trade could always provide a plug-in for left field, however, the three known options all seem like sensible fits for what the Bombers need.
We saw it in October, Aaron Boone had just three relievers that he fully trusted: Jonathan Loaisiga, Wandy Peralta and Clay Holmes. Adding to this group is necessary.
While Michael King’s injury did play a huge role in shortening the Yanks stable of elite arms, adding more depth to the pen can only help when injuries do come about.
Zack Britton, Aroldis Chapman and Chad Green are all free agents and it’s hard to see any of them making their way back — especially Chapman after the way his Yankee tenure ended.
However, one target to watch here is former Yankee Tommy Kahnle. Kahnle posted a 2.83 ERA in 13 appearances with the Dodgers in his first stint back from Tommy John surgery. The 33-year-old’s fastball played at an average of 95.5 mph.
While Cashman is notorious for finding gems in other organizations via trade that end up being elite in the bullpen, they should explore all avenues to ensure what happened this October never plays out again.
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