This offseason has been an eventful one in the MLB. The AL East, in particular, got a makeover of sorts. The Toronto Blue Jays signed Dylan Cease, Cody Ponce, and Kazuma Okamoto, easing the pain left by the departures of Bo Bichette and Seranthony Dominguez. The Baltimore Orioles got Pete Alonso and traded for Shane Baz and Taylor Ward, bolstering their team after a dismal season. As for the New York Yankees, their offseason was quieter than fans would have liked.
The Yankees were able to retain the services of Cody Bellinger, who is having a career resurgence. However, New York hasn't made a whole lot of noise in the offseason. The Yankees did retain Trent Grisham on a qualifying offer, and Ryan Weathers should help bolster their bullpen. Still, after all the noise the Blue Jays and the Orioles made, fans would have liked if the Yankees didn't just “run it back.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone was asked about the Yankees just running it back. Boone answered by saying that this core won 94 games last season, but that the same result is not guaranteed.
“It’s February 3rd, and we've got a long way to go to be good,” Boone said, per Jon Heyman. “We’re coming with a team that won 94 games last year. And by the way, it doesn’t mean we’ll be that good… All I can tell you is I’m excited about the piece of clay that we have, the roster that we have, the potential of that roster. It’s on all of us to try and go bring it to fruition.”
The Yankees were tied with the Blue Jays for the best record in the American League last season. New York was able to reach that record even without Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon for some parts of the year. Anthony Volpe also experienced a severe sophomore slump. Their title hopes were dashed in the Divisional Series after losing to the Blue Jays 3-1.
There's a good reason to be concerned about the Yankees' inaction. The rest of their division got upgrades, while New York stayed mostly the same. Still, the team is banking on a bounce back from Volpe, Cole, and Rodon, while hoping that the flashes from Ben Rice and Austin Wells last season become more consistent.
