The New York Yankees are now shifting their focus to the pitching rotation for the 2014 season. After getting their outfield taken care of with Carlos Beltran and Jacoby Ellsbury and signing Brian McCann to a top dollar deal, the team is now gearing up to beef up their arms. After being told their Plan A might not be an option, the Yankees are now adjusting Plan B.
While it is not official, the Rakuten Golden Eagles are likely to block Masahiro Tanaka from being released to the major leagues. The star Japanese right-handed pitcher was the top target by the New York Yankees. He went 24-0 with a 1.27 ERA while winning the Japanese Series this year. The New York Times is reporting Tanaka will no longer be made available after being dissatisfied with the new posting arrangement between the MLB and the Nippon Professional Baseball League.
The system makes the posting fee around $20 million when it once reached as high as $51.7 million. It is more beneficial to the player since more teams can afford to create a bidding war, but the Nippon league is not satisfied.
The Yankees reportedly saw this move coming and have begun adjusting a Plan B for when this move is made official. That plan reportedly involves Johan Santana. The pitcher is considered a very risky signing. He has missed two of the past three seasons with injuries. At 34, it is really uncertain if he can bounce back at this point. He has had multiple surgeries to fix his shoulder and fingers.
The Yankees might target Santana to a potential minor league deal to see if he can prove himself in training camp first. He is still considered one of the better free agents on the market with his high winning percentage and favorable ERA. He did pitch a no-hitter for the Mets which seemed impossible at the time.
Another option for the Yankees is to let someone in their system compete for the spot. David Phelps, Michael Pineda and Vidal Nuno will possibly compete for the No. 5 spot. Right now, Hiroki Kuroda, CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova occupy the first three spots, leaving the No. 4 spot open.
The Yankees could chase after a pitcher like Matt Garza, Ervin Santana or Ubaldo Jimenez. They are likely the best starting pitchers on the market, but according the general Brian Cashman, the team is trying to be cost effective which would eliminate those three players.