The New York Yankees appear to be planning another big offseason move, having already made the biggest one thus far.
The world of baseball was taken aback when New York acquired superstar slugger Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres for a package that included veteran catcher Kyle Higashioka and several pitchers.
On paper, Soto instantly improves the Yankees’ pitiful offense, but pitching needs to be added by the team this offseason. Yoshinobu Yamamoto is a young talent who has been linked to New York on several occasions. According to SNY’s Andy Martino, the city has a “strong desire” to sign him.
“The Yankees, meanwhile, have a strong desire to land Yamamoto and a willingness to show Evil Empire levels of financial aggressiveness,” Martino stated. “The Mets had thought that the Yanks’ acquisition of Juan Soto would eliminate them from the running for the Yamamoto series, but sources say Hal Steinbrenner is still fully committed to spending even after the Soto trade is completed.
“The Yankees have long been a favorite over the Mets to sign Yamamoto, but the (Steve Cohen)/(David Stearns) trip seemed to have helped level the playing field.”
Bringing Yamamoto on board would be the ideal next move during the winter break. With the addition of Alex Verdugo and Soto, New York’s offense has already improved. Gerrit Cole is a terrific top arm for the Yankees, but they could use another one in their rotation. Yamamoto would be exactly that, giving the Yankees, theoretically, one of the better rotations.
After acquiring Soto, New York already appears to be a playoff team. It would be a contender for the World Series if it could also land Yamamoto.
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