Spring training begins for MLB teams in two weeks as franchises round out their rosters and make last-minute moves for the 2024 season. Most moves this deep into the offseason don't exactly move the needle, but the Baltimore Orioles took it upon themselves to make a blockbuster trade for 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes. It's the sort of acquisition that puts opposing teams on notice, espeically Balitmore's foes in the stacked AL East. One of those rivals, the New York Yankees, are usually the ones making the big moves.
How will the Bronx Bombers respond to the Orioles' addition? Well, as much as Yankees fans don’t want to hear this, New York is likely done making significant transactions this offseason. The Yankees traded for superstar outfielder Juan Soto in December and solidified the rotation by signing 2023 All-Star Marcus Stroman in January.
Looking at the Yankees roster, it's hard to see where exactly the holes are. There is plenty of talent and the roster is basically set aside from a few bullpen decisions. Not to mention the Yankees already have four massive contracts on the books and the highest projected payroll in baseball, things that make another splash move difficult for New York to pull off.
As it currently stands, the Yankees have a team on paper that should contend for the AL East and be one of the six playoff teams in the American League. “On paper” doesn’t always translate to the field though, as was the case last season for the Yankees.
The Yankees shouldn’t panic because the Orioles acquired Corbin Burnes. There are moves they can make before and during the season that can counter it though.
Dumping Giancarlo Stanton's contract
It's much easier said than done, but the Yankees have to move on from Giancarlo Stanton. The once-feared slugger's career with the Yankees has been marred by injury and falling short of expectations, both of which were the story of his 2023 season.
Stanton missed 61 games last season as he was placed on the injured list for the eighth time in his six seasons in New York. When he was healthy, the 2017 NL MVP had his worst season at the plate, hitting a career-low .191 with a .695 OPS.
Reports are that the Yankees like what Stanton has done this offseason as he's expected to retain his place as New York's primary designated hitter, but it's hard to ignore Brian Cashman's comments from November when he bluntly said Stanton will likely get injured again in 2024.
Though Cashman quickly cleared the air, those comments struck a nerve with Stanton's agent and might have played a factor in the Yankees' failed pursuit of Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
The fact of the matter is that Stanton is owed $118 million over the next four seasons and a team like the Yankees – who expect to contend for a championship every year – can't afford a player failing to meet expectations at that salary.
It would be foolish for the Yankees or their fans to expect Stanton to reel back his younger years and hit for both a solid average and whopping power. The 34-year-old still has that raw power in him though, averaging 30 home runs a season since 2021 despite missing a total of 136 games during that three-year span.
That alone could attract a small-market team that needs to sell some tickets, but the Yankees would have to eat a lot of Stanton's salary if they want to move him. It's unlikely at this point given where Stanton is in age, but if the Yankees can get anything of substance back in exchange for him, they'd be wise to strike a deal.
Trading for a front-end starting pitcher in-season
As mentioned before, the Yankees pulled off perhaps the trade of the offseason by acquiring Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres. Though that move is now being shadowed by Baltimore's Corbin Burnes trade, Soto may have a bigger impact on the Yankees than Burnes on the Orioles when the 2024 season is all said and done.
The caveat in both of those trades is that Soto and Burnes are set to become free agents next offseason, giving the Yankees and Orioles another task to secure those stars long-term.
If Cashman wants to create even more “problems” for his future self while making the Yankees a better team in 2024, he can look to acquire another starting pitcher without a long-term contract. The leading candidates who fit that criteria, now that Burnes has been moved, are Shane Bieber and Dylan Cease.
The Yankees would hypothetically have to give up less for Bieber given this is his final year under team control, but the Cleveland Guardians can win their division in 2024 and still have hopes to locking their ace into a contract extension. If this is the way New York wants to improve during the season, putting a package together for Cease might suit them better.
Cease won’t be a free agent until after the 2025 season, making him an intriguing trade prospect as the 2024 season moves on. The Chicago White Sox, rightfully so, are not budging on their requests from opposing teams looking to acquire their ace, knowing they essentially have a season and a half to trade him while still getting plenty of value.
If Cease shakes off some of the rust he showed last season and gets back to Cy Young Award form while the White Sox continue to falter in a lowly AL Central, the opportunity is there for a contending team to pounce.
Why can't the Yankees be that contending team? The White Sox will likely ask for a mix of prospects and major league players, both of which the Yankees have to offer. With four top-100 prospects and moveable pieces in the pitching staff, the Yankees might have what it takes to pull off a deal for Cease before the trade deadline.
A postseason rotation of Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon, Marcus Stroman and Dylan Cease would be music to Yankees fans ears.
How do the Yankees stack up in the AL East?
The American League East is once again expected to be the best division in all of Major League Baseball in 2024. After sending three teams to the postseason last year, there is an argument to be made that four AL East teams are playoff caliber before the start of the 2024 season.
Despite winning 82 games and finishing fourth in the division last year, the Yankees are the odds-on favorites to take the AL East crown. Though the Orioles' odds got better after acquiring Burnes, the Yankees are still the team to beat according to most sportsbooks.
It shouldn’t shock anyone to see the Yankees improve their win total from a year ago, nor should it be a surprise if the Orioles don’t reach 100 wins. To say that the Yankees are the clear favorites though is tough to get behind.
Health has been a significant issue for the Yankees in recent years, even when they were ripping off 95-plus win seasons. It will almost certainly play a factor this year in the AL East race and the Yankees might not have the depth advantage over the Orioles.
It won't be a two horse race either with the Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays both trotting out playoff rosters in 2024. There's a chance that all five teams lead the division at some point, even for a day in April. How that and health impacts each franchise will be the story of the AL East this season.
The Yankees will always be the team to beat because of their history, but the other AL East teams aren’t afraid of New York like they were in decades past. Whoever wins the division won’t have a walk in the park, but they'll be nicely set up for a playoff run because of it.
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