Should the Yankees bring back Andrew McCutchen?

If the 2018 Yankees season taught us anything, it’s that there’s no such thing as too much depth. The Bombers started the year with an outfield “logjam” and by the time August rolled around, Shane Robinson was a starting outfielder. It really was a low point in the season, especially for a team that was trying to catch the Red Sox in the division.

Brian Cashman had poked around for an outfielder at the trade deadline, considering everyone from Andrew McCutchen, to Curtis Granderson, to Cameron Maybin, but decided to stand pat. When it became clear that Aaron Judge was not returning from his broken wrist anytime soon, the Yankees finally acquired McCutchen out of sheer desperation.

I had admittedly low expectations for the veteran outfielder, but he exceeded them. Through 87 at-bats, he slashed .253/.421/.471 with five home runs and 22 walks. Most days, it was a relief to see him in the outfield, especially while Judge was on the DL.

Like nearly every other player in the lineup, he didn’t help the Yankees much during the postseason. He did have that RBI off the wall in Fenway, though (and later, misplayed a ball off the wall in Fenway). Now he’s just one of many 2018 Yankees who became free agents at the end of the season. Is he one of the players that they should consider bringing back though?

You may be wondering where exactly he would fit, since the Yankees just brought Brett Gardner back on a one-year deal. Let me remind you that this team had Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, Aaron Judge, Aaron Hicks, Giancarlo Stanton, Clint Frazier, and Billy McKinney during spring training. They lost half of them to injury. Too many players is a good problem to have, and these things have a way of working themselves out. If the Bombers want to keep Stanton at DH, then maybe they ride the hot bat and have Gardner and Cutch split time in left field.

Obviously, something like this shouldn’t be the team’s top priority. The Yankees have three holes in the rotation, so they should be focused on improving starting pitching first. However, if they are given the chance to bring McCutchen back at a reasonable price and on a relatively short-term deal, I don’t see why they shouldn’t take it. You can really never have too many outfielders.

Do you think the Yankees should bring McCutchen back? Do you think we’ll see Ellsbury play at all next year? Vote in the poll below and let us know what you think in the comments section.