What are the Yankees’ weaknesses going into 2020?

With the addition of Gerrit Cole, the Yankees have established themselves as baseball’s premiere super-team. They added arguably the best pitcher in baseball to a star-studded lineup, complete with an elite bullpen. How much more could the Yankees improve besides simply selecting more players from the AL All-Star team?

It goes without saying though that there is always room for improvement. While there may not be several significant areas for the Yankees to upgrade, there are still weak spots they can reinforce.

Take Gary Sanchez for example. His inconsistency on both sides of the ball could count as a weakness. He has big potential at the plate, as evidenced by his career 123 wRC+ and impressive home-run total. Yet he can go through rough patches, like this past July, when he went 6-for-64 with a -7 wRC+.

Fielding concerns and injuries have plagued his career to date as well. With a few tweaks, Sanchez could consistently be the best catcher in baseball, but so far, he has struggled to reach that true potential.

A second weakness the Yankees will have to deal with going into 2020 is the fact that Aaron Hicks will be out for at least half the season recovering from Tommy John surgery. The 2019 Yankees scoff at the thought of having to cover for one injury, but that leaves the club short in center field. Brett Gardner recently re-signed with the team, but he doesn’t offer the upside Hicks does. Having their recently-extended center fielder appear in just 59 games since signing isn’t great.

The third weakness general one: health and injuries. The 2019 Yankees sent the most players to the IL in the history of the sport; last year was ridiculous, but it may have blinded some fans to the fact that this is an issue for the Yankees in general. Big-time players who are critical to the Yankees’ success spent lots of time on the IL over the past few seasons. Take a look at how many games these players appeared in over the past two years: Aaron Judge at 214, Giancarlo Stanton with 176, and then Hicks and Sanchez at 196 and 195, respectively. These are All-Star caliber players that the Yankees have lost for significant periods of time.

It certainly seems like the Cole signing may propel the franchise to its 28th championship. And with a near-complete roster, this team needs to go out there and do it. You can gaze at the Opening Day roster with starry eyes all you want, but the World Series trophy won’t find it’s way back to its familiar home of the Bronx if the team can’t stay healthy and execute.