For most of the past 20 years the Yankees have been the model of consistency. They have made the playoffs in 17 seasons since 1995 and by missing the playoffs in both 2013 and 2014 they have not reached the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1993-94. With the retirement of Derek Jeter this season the Yankee Dynasty, as it has been known has officially come to an end. However, in typical Yankee fashion, all actions this off-season will be focused on trying to return the club to its former glory.
Yankees look to Get Back in Playoffs in 2015
Aside from Jeter several other key performers will become free agents in 2015 including Hiroki Kuroda, Ichiro Suzuki, David Robertson, Brandon McCarthy, and Chase Headley. Kuroda and Suzuki are tentatively expected to retire so they are likely not returning to the Yankees. Robertson was excellent in his first season as a full time closer and will very likely be re-signed this offseason.
The big question marks will be what the Yankees decide to do with Headley and McCarthy. Both were mid-season pickups via trade and performed very well in their time in New York. While in San Diego Headley posted a wOBA of below.300 and a wRC+ of 90 but upon the trade to the Yankees those numbers jumped up to .347 and 121 respectably. McCarthy had an even bigger renaissance. In Arizona, McCarthy had an ERA of 5.01 over 18 starts but in New York his ERA dropped to 2.89 across 14 starts. Both trades were huge reasons that the Yankees even had a chance to make a late season playoff push. Both players are 2015 free agents but the Yankees have potential replacements returning from injury/suspension. Alex Rodriguez will be returning at the beginning of 2015 and the biggest question surrounding him is what type of player will be returning, and whether or not he can be the third baseman for the Yankees. It is clear that over the past few seasons that the Rodriguez is not the same player he used to be. In 2011 and 2012 ARod posted his lowest totals at wOBA and wRC+ since his first two seasons with the Mariners in 1994 and 1995. However he still is an above average offensive player offensively with a wRC+ of 113 in both seasons. The Yankees main issue this season was run scoring and one issue they had was at the DH position where they posted a RC+ of 86 (100 is league average). Rodriguez has posted a negative dWAR in his past two seasons and is not longer a good defensive third baseman. His biggest contribution next season could come as a full time designated hitter allowing him to maximize his offensive ability. This would allow the Yankees to re-sign Headley and use him as their full-time third baseman.
The 2015 rotation figures to have four guys that are set in stone with CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova returning from injuries and Mashiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda returning from very good seasons although both were limited by injuries of their own. They also have Shane Greene who showed flashes of dominance in his rookie campaign. Sabathia has been in decline over the past few seasons with his velocity dropping and Nova is coming back from Tommy John and has had an up and down career as a Yankee. Re-signing McCarthy at the right price would help solidify a rotation that could have the potential to be among the best in the league.
Left field and center field are two positions where the Yankees are poised to return very good players with Brett Gardner having one of his best season in 2014 adding power to an already above average game and Jacoby Ellsbury, who they signed last season, returning to play center field again hopefully improving off a 2014 season that was slightly below average season by his standards. Right field will be a question mark with Carlos Beltran returning from an injury plagued season that leaves his ability to play the field in question. The Yankees could be players in free agency for a cheap corner outfielder to play that position. Their options are limited in the unrestricted free agent pool but a potential reunion with Melky Cabrera could be an option if they do not believe that Beltran can play right field. Another option is re-signing Chris Young, who in a short stint at the end of the year with New York played extremely well.
In the infield Mark Teixiera will be returning to play first base with hopes of returning to form and being the productive middle of the order type he was in the past. Another key midseason addition was Martin Prado who played well in his time for the Yankees and could slot as their Opening Day second baseman. The biggest replacement will be at short stop where they are losing Derek Jeter from a historic career. Although Jeter’s production and defensive ability regressed in the past few seasons he was a mainstay in Pinstripes and the heart and soul behind many successful teams. Possible FA targets include Hanley Ramirez and JJ Hardy if their respective teams let them test free agency. Both are talented offensive players who could help cure the Yankees offensive woes from the previous season. Starlin Castro could be a potential target via trade as the Cubs have a few talented infield prospects that could replace him and the Yankees farm system has a few top catching prospects who could help a Cubs team that needs help at that position. Brian McCann is also returning for the Yankees coming off a down season offensively and looks to be a good bounce-back candidate.
The Yankees are a team with a good amount of talent top to bottom in all facets of the game and could return to the postseason with a few key moves. They are not too far off from returning to the playoffs and if their players return to the level they have performed at the past and their players coming back from injury stay healthy. If Brian Cashman spends the free agent money wisely and the Yankees do not panic and make any irrational moves in order to try to return to their former glory they could very easily be key players in the AL East race in 2015. The Yanks could even take the division title back to a team that has become so familiar with it in seasons past.
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