The Yankees are staring at a starting rotation held together by hope and athletic tape, yet the checkbook remains frustratingly closed. With Gerrit Cole recovering from Tommy John surgery and Carlos Rodón shelved until late April to remove a bone chip, the need for another frontline starter is screamingly obvious.
However, General Manager Brian Cashman finds himself navigating a market that is either historically thin on free-agent talent or prohibitively expensive in terms of prospect capital.
Trading for a legitimate arm like Milwaukee’s Freddy Peralta would require gutting the farm system of its top talent, a move Cashman seems unwilling to make after spending years rebuilding the pipeline.
That leaves Tatsuya Imai, the Japanese sensation coming over from the NPB, as the last intriguing name on the board. Imai was tremendous overseas last year, but with a price tag expected to surpass $150 million, the Yankees are hesitant to double down after dropping over $200 million on Max Fried just last winter.
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Jack Curry Pours Cold Water on the Imai Rumors
While Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that the Yankees met with Imai to conduct due diligence, doing homework and writing a check are two very different things. Jack Curry of the YES Network, who often acts as the unofficial voice of reason for the organization, recently crushed the dreams of fans hoping for a Japanese import.
“Yeah you talk about Imai and in a lot of places there’s the connection between Imai and the Yankees being made,” Curry said on MLB’s Hot Stove this week. “I want to tell you, the vibe that I’m getting is that that connection does not exist.”
It appears the Yankees are wary of overextending themselves for an international pitcher, especially when their financial focus is clearly elsewhere. Imai himself noted that team interest doesn’t always translate to offers, and while he is currently holding Zoom conferences with suitors like the Cubs, Phillies, and Mets, the Yankees seem content to sit this one out.
As one report noted, “Jack Curry had kind of suggested that the Yankees aren’t that likely for Imai,” reinforcing the idea that Cashman is looking for value, not another mega-contract.
Betting on the Kids and Bringing Back Bellinger
Instead of splashing cash on a starter, revealing the master plan behind the Yankees’ dormant offseason points toward a heavy reliance on internal options.
The front office seems prepared to ride with younger arms like Will Warren, Luis Gil, Cam Schlittler, and potentially Elmer Rodriguez to bridge the gap until the veterans return. It is a risky strategy for a team with championship-or-bust expectations, but it allows them to preserve resources for their true priority.
That priority remains the lineup. The latest Yankees Cody Bellinger update takes a positive turn, suggesting the team is far more focused on reuniting with their star outfielder than adding a volatile arm to the rotation. Cashman is essentially gambling that his offense can outslug the rotation’s early-season deficiencies, a bold strategy that will look brilliant if it works and catastrophic if the kids aren’t ready for the bright lights.