Yankees Quiet Offseason: Time to Make Moves

The Yankees 2025-2026 offseason is moving like molasses. So far, the Yankees have not brought in a free agent to the major league roster that was not on their team in the 2025 season. The Yankees need to begin to make some moves as the AL East gets stronger by the day.

Right now, the Yankees are not a playoff team. If Hal Steinbrenner -- that's right, this is on him -- keeps the payroll below $300 million in 2026, they will not be a playoff team. According to FanGraphs RosterResource, the Yankees current payroll sits at $284,966,701. That would leave about $15 million to spend. The Yankees need at least one bat in their lineup, a frontline starter, and a lot of bullpen help.

Lineup Upgrades

Image of Cody Bellinger. Credit: YES Network

The Yankees are waiting on Cody Bellinger. I feel like I have seen this movie before. The Yankees are waiting around for another Scott Boras client, stringing them along before a decision is made. They will try to wait out Bellinger because of how much they like the player, but the Yankees have their limits. They won't blow past the highest offer for Bellinger or offer a reckless deal, nor should they. The buzz around the league is that Bellinger will likely wait to sign until Kyle Tucker -- who the Yankees are out on -- signs his deal.

The Yankees should formulate a 'Plan B' in case Bellinger walks to upgrade this lineup. Bo Bichette is an interesting option the Yankees could explore. Bichette is a right-handed bat who projects to be a second basemen, and has told teams this offseason he is open to moving positions. The Yankees could explore signing him and trading Jazz Chisholm Jr. for a starting pitcher if they don't want to spend money on one.

Starting Rotation Upgrades

(Gene Wang/Getty Images)

While the messaging coming from Boone this offseason has been that they are set in the rotation, that should not be the case. The Yankees schedule in April and May are not going to be easy and with three question marks (Will Warren, Luis Gil, and Ryan Yarbrough) out of five rotation spots, the Yankees need an upgrade.

If the Yankees want to be the Yankees, they would just go out and sign Tatsuya Imai from Japan. The Yankees are expected to be finalists in the race to acquire Imai's services, along with the Cubs and Phillies. It's time to get the deal done and improve the rotation.

The Yankees could also look, and may be more likely to, acquire a starter via trade. Names on the market include Freddy Peralta from the Brewers, Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera from the Marlins, and MacKenzie Gore from the Nationals, among others. In order to make a trade, the Yankees will likely need to wait out the aforementioned Bellinger sweepstakes so they can use Jasson Domínguez or Spencer Jones as collateral in the deal.

Bullpen

Chicago Cubs v St. Louis Cardinals | Dilip Vishwanat/GettyImages

The Yankees bullpen needs some help right now. Both Devin Williams and Luke Weaver are in Queens, and that leaves a void in the bullpen. Time to make some upgrades.

The Yankees are unlikely to sign a reliever on a multi-year deal in free agency given their track record, but could turn to the trade market to acquire an arm. The Yankees have shown interest in both JoJo Romero from the Cardinals and Trevor Megill from the Brewers. Both would improve the bullpen greatly.

Acquiring another starter could also allow the Yankees to move Gil to the bullpen. With his erratic control, having to maintain velocity for one inning compared to a whole start.

The bottom line -- opening day is getting closer by the second. It's time for the Yankees to make some moves this offseason before it's too late.