Yankees general manager Brian Cashman thinks his team will score fewer runs this season, which is why he’s really doing his homework when it comes to the club’s starting rotation.
The Yankees are “fishing around” for a veteran pitcher who can start in Triple-A, according to the New York Post’s Joel Sherman.
The Bronx Bombers reportedly have their eyes on a familiar friend in Chien-Ming Wang, as they plan to watch him during the upcoming World Baseball Classic. Cashman and the Yankees reportedly have no interest in free agent Kyle Lohse, though.
The Yankees’ rotation currently consists of CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Andy Pettitte, Phil Hughes and either Ivan Nova or David Phelps. However, Hughes is battling a bulging disk in his upper back, which makes adding organizational depth somewhat of a necessity.
Wang went 2-3 with a 6.68 ERA in 10 appearances (five starts) with the Nationals last season. The 32-year-old hasn’t been the same pitcher he once was in recent years due to injuries, but the Yanks could take a flier in the hopes that he can regain some of what helped him win 19 games in both 2006 and 2007 for the Yankees. Wang actually finished second in AL Cy Young voting in 2006, when he went 19-6 with a 3.63 ERA for New York.
Lohse remains the top free-agent starter on the open market, but teams have been reluctant to sign him because of the draft pick compensation they’d have to relinquish as part of any deal.
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Photo via Wikipedia/Chien-Ming Wang
