The New York Yankees appear to be gearing up for a major offseason.
The Bronx Bombers kicked things off Monday by trading for Seattle Mariners left-handed ace James Paxton. And less than a day later, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported that New York has talked about signing slugging outfielder Bryce Harper to play first base.
However, Morosi reports the Yankees are more in favor of signing a high-profile infielder, such as Manny Machado.
“The Yankees also remain involved in the marketplace for high-end position players, although sources say the addition of Manny Machado or Bryce Harper is less of a priority than augmenting the rotation,” Morosi wrote.
“The Yankees have had internal discussions since the offseason began about the possibility of signing Harper to play first base, but one source described that scenario as ‘unrealistic’ — at least, for now. The Yankees believe Machado is a better fit for their roster, given the absence of starting shortstop Didi Gregorius while he recovers from Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow.”
Adding Harper, of course, would be enormous for the Yankees — and potentially disastrous for their rivals.
The 2015 National League Most Valuable Player is a career .279 hitter with 184 homers, 521 RBIs and a .900 OPS. Oh, and he’s still just 26 years old.
Add that to a lineup that already has Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Gary Sanchez? Yikes.
As for Machado, rumors of New York’s potential interest in the star shortstop have been all over the place. Some say the Yankees are “lukewarm” on the 26-year-old, while others indicate more significant interest.
Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner, for one, first wants to figure out how Machado really feels about hustling.
