TAMPA — What are the Yankees going to do in the wake of a worst-case scenario in which their ace’s elbow has been opened up for an operation that will knock him out for at least a year?
Nothing major immediately, in all likelihood.
With Gerrit Cole undergoing Tommy John surgery, Brian Cashman signaled that because of the time of the season and because of the club’s payroll situation, significant moves are not on the horizon and would be more likely around the trade deadline.
The general manager left himself wiggle room, said the Yankees would “evaluate what’s available” and smaller transactions are possible, but trades for big-time starting pitchers rarely happen until a team is willing to begin selling — which often does not happen until July.
“In this time of year, very little is available,” Cashman said Tuesday, when Cole’s elbow was being operated upon across the country. “Normally, the more significant opportunities don’t exist until the trade deadline.
“… You hope that you can withstand injuries and avoid injuries early, from spring training up through the [mid-July] draft, because going outside the organization is that much more difficult to do. So we’ll rely on what we have, and we’ll explore what’s limited available in the marketplace.”
In the limited marketplace that is free agency in March, the starting pitchers remaining include veterans Kyle Gibson, Lance Lynn, Patrick Corbin and Spencer Turnbull. With just over two weeks until Opening Day, none would be ready to begin the season.
And with the Yankees above the Steve Cohen tax threshold that is $301 million this season — last month Hal Steinbrenner said the Yankees’ payroll, for luxury-tax purposes, was projected to be between $307 million and $308 million — any added dollar would come with a 110 percent tax.
Trading for a bigger-name, bigger-salaried pitcher such as the Diamondbacks’ Jordan Montgomery would be pricey.
“The costs financially are so strong,” Cashman said. “It’s double the money, and obviously that makes it less likely to be a more realistic chance because we’re already so committed. But we’ll see.”
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