FanPost

A Championship with Austerity

Much to the dismay of the fanbase, the Yankees indications that they want to stay under the first salary tax threshold of $210 million has dominated the off-season discussions thus far. I fall in line with those sentiments as well, and would love to see the Bombers flex their financial might and blow through any and all tax barriers in an effort to bring home a World Series title. Unfortunately, as much as we may all wish for that to be the case, the reality is likely that resetting the the tax rate is the directive under which Brian Cashman is operating. With that in mind, I have put together some ideas as to how New York can accomplish both objectives - win it all, and stay under the "cap".

I used the data provided at Spotrac for the salaries in this post. In some cases information was missing, but since a lot of salary information is hypothetical anyway (arbitration figures and free agency values are estimates, for example), I'm operating under the assumption that the starting point of the payroll in this exercise is $193 million, which is the "Luxury Tax Salary" listed by Spotrac and includes Jacoby Ellsbury's $26 million cap hit. Talk about a tough way to to start!

First I'll address some unpopular opinions I hold in regard to how I'd accomplish the tasks laid out above. Note that I don't hold any grievances against the following players, nor do I think they lack value. In my view, their salaries and/or roster spots are more valuable being used elsewhere.

1. Try to deal Aaron Hicks to shed salary. I'm not sure what the market is like currently or who would potentially be interested in acquiring him, but all indications are that he is signed to a team-friendly contract. That being said, freeing up $10 million is key. The defensive metrics tell us that Hicks is slowing down in CF and may not be able to hold that position too much further into the future, with a move to LF imminent. Given the vast expanse of LF in Yankee Stadium, I'm not sure that sliding over to that spot is in the best interests of the Yankees. Signing for a cheap replacement (Delino DeShields at $1 million, for example) or acquiring someone via trade (Raimel Tapia of Colorado, $2 million) upgrades the defense and speed at the expense of the lineup, but the Yankees have enough offense to cover for a weak spot here.

2. Try to deal Adam Ottavino to shed salary. While a bounceback is possible, at $9 million Ottavino is making too much money. Maybe Dave Dombrowski would be interested in taking him on for a low level prospect given the dumpster fire that is the Phillies bullpen? I know there is a glut of relief pitching available in free agency at the moment so dealing Ottavino will be difficult. That being said, it should still be explored.

3. Release or trade Luis Cessa. Yes, I realize he is not making much money and he does have value as a bulk/low leverage arm, but the Yankees have plenty of RP depth from which to choose. A big part of my plan involves maximizing the Scranton Shuttle. Removing Cessa saves $1 million.

4. Use Cessa (if he's not released outright), Miguel Andujar, Mike Ford and Domingo German as sweeteners to deals. I don't think that any of these guys have a ton of value currently, but including them in deals may help get players in return that can better help, and/or free up roster spots for more talented/versatile/useful players. Plus, they are all inexpensive (Andujar, Ford and German are all at the minimum salary of $575k) so in that regard they may be somewhat attractive to other teams. Andujar and Ford add nothing with their gloves, so removing one-dimensional players allows for more dynamic/versatile players to take their spots.

Shedding the above salaries frees up roughly $22,500,000, so our payroll in this hypothetical is now $171 million. Now it's time to acquire the players that will make this plan work!

1. Acquire Joe Musgrove via trade with the Pirates. I'm assuming that Pittsburgh would take lower-level minor leaguers in return. Maybe German and/or Andujar could be appealing to the Pirates, but with Ke"Bryan Hayes about to take over at 3B I'd guess that Miggy would only be interesting to them if the DH is adopted by the NL in 2021. Upgrading from German to Musgrove adds more certainty and upside to the rotation. Musgrove is pegged at $3,750,000 for this season.

2. Acquire Luis Castillo via trade with the Reds. I've read the various posts and arguments about this idea. Can this be done without including Jasson "The Martian" Dominguez? Perhaps not, but explore that possibility and maybe the Reds are desperate enough for cash that they don't insist on Dominguez in return. However, if including The Martian is the only way to acquire Castillo, pull the trigger and get it done. Castillo is making $4,400,000 this year.

3. Sign Corey Kluber. His salary estimate is $6,500,000. Done and done. If he's cooked, no big loss. The upside here, at the price point, makes too much sense not to do it.

4. Sign Delino DeShields and Mitch Moreland. I'm absolutely guessing here, but I can't imagine either of these guys costing much more than $1 million or so. DeShields is either the starting CF with the departure of Hicks, or is depth. If DeShields is so atrocious at the plate that his defense is not making up for the offensive shortfall, Mike Tauchman or Estevan Florial can be given shots to win the job. As for Moreland, he is a lefty power bat to occasionally spell Luke Voit against certain righties, and is known for his excellent glovework. He could have a role as a late inning defensive replacement and even though he's older, he's an upgrade over Ford.

5. Sign Tommy La Stella for 2B. Unfortunately, we don't have enough money in our budget to resign DJ LeMahieu, so grabbing La Stella for $5 million provides another lefty bat and saves the Yankees from having to pencil in Tyler Wade as the starter. Wade is kept in his utility role and can be a late game defensive replacement as well.

The above acquisitions add $21,650,000 to the payroll, bringing us almost back up to our starting point of $193 million! Let's take a look at the roster after these moves have been made:

Rotation:

Gerrit Cole

Luis Castillo

Joe Musgrove

Corey Kluber

Jordan Montgomery

Waiting in the wings - Luis Severino, along with Deivi Garcia and Clarke Schmidt (if not included in the Castillo deal)

Bullpen:

Aroldis Chapman

Zack Britton

Chad Green

Jonathan Loaisiga

The rest of the bullpen will be filled out by committee/Scranton Shuttle, from the pool remaining (if they are not included in the deals for Musgrove or Castillo) - Abreu, Contreras, Gill, Heller, King, Kriske, Medina, Nelson, Vizcaino, Yajure. The Yankees have more than enough power arms to develop some new blood for the bullpen. If not, as mentioned above there are plenty of available RP arms that should be cheap, and we still have $17 million available. If Ottavino is unmovable, tack on his $9 million salary.

Infield:

1B - Luke Voit, Mitch Moreland

2B - Tommy La Stella

SS - Gleyber Torres

3B - Gio Urshela

UTIL - Tyler Wade, Thairo Estrada

Outfield:

RF - Aaron Judge

CF - Delino DeShields

LF - Clint Frazier

OF - Mike Tauchman

DH - Giancarlo Stanton

We could probably use another bat for the outfield in this scenario, but that shouldn't be too difficult to find. Florial is also an option and it's especially encouraging to see that he's off to a hot start in the Dominican Winter League.

So there you have it. Payroll is somewhere between $193 and $202 million with these moves factored in (Ottavino making up the variance), which still leaves some room for a veteran FA RP, or saving the money with an eye toward addressing needs at the trade deadline. Some lefty balance is added to the roster (I know that having that balance is not "needed" necessarily, but it does provide some flexibility), CF defense is upgraded, and the rotation is converted from a red flag to potentially a strength. I am taking a risk in the bullpen, but I look at what Tampa Bay has done with a bevy of non-descript, hard throwing, interchangeable pieces and I think that model can work in NY. Keep arms fresh, develop guys and prevent overuse by using the Scranton Shuttle. In my view there is absolutely no need to overpay for RP help. In fact, I would not have exercised Britton's option if it were up to me, but that's a whole other tangent.

OK, if you've stuck with me this far, go ahead and let me have it in the comments! Or, in the spirit of the holidays, be gentle. Either way, I'd love to hear your feedback.

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