SPANISH HALREM – The General Manager’s Meetings are under way and unlike the winter meetings where deals are usually done, the groundwork is laid for possible trades in the future. 
Brain Cashman has stated that the New York Yankees will be in on Gerrit Cole, Stephen Strasburg and Madison Bumgarner but that doesn’t mean that he won’t pull the trigger on a deal if he feels it makes the team better. If we look back at last year’s off-season, the Yankees pounced early to trade for James Paxton and because of that, the organization decided to hold their ground on a big contract for Patrick Corbin. Hopefully that won’t be the case this time and the Yanks land a front-line starter.
With that, what say we rank Need & Probability – Out of 10 – of any of the big three coming to the Bronx?
GERRIT COLE (RANK: 9 out of 10) – PROBABILITY: High)
Let’s not beat around the bush here. Gerrit Cole the best available starting pitcher on the market and in his prime physically. At 29, you have a bona fide Ace and after his post-season run, the guy you want pitching game one. Even with Paxton and Luis Severino in the rotation, getting Cole means you a proven guy that shuts down other teams when it matters. He was drafted by the Yankees and later they tried to trade for him before he was sent to Houston. The Bombers should do everything in their power to sign him, salary cap taxes be damned.
STEPHEN STRASBURG (RANK: 5 out of 10 – PROBABILITY: Low)
He was the Washington Nationals’ post season hero and the World Series MVP but with the injuries he has endured throughout his career, I don’t see the Yankees really making a push to sign Strasburg. They will talk to his agent and see what the asking price starts at and keep tabs on him. But in the end they won’t really go far in years to make it intriguing. While he has proven to be a force this past post-season and that’s something the brass likes, in the end the injury history will make them shy away.
MADISON BUMGARNER (RANK 7 out of 10 – PROBABILITY: Unknown)
What I found surprising about Bumgarner is that he is still only 30 years old. For some reason, I thought he was older. I assume it’s because I have been hearing about him for years and he was the best pitcher on the planet when the post season starts during the San Francisco’s Giants run of championships. Though he has dealt with injuries recently, none of them made you think that you wouldn’t get a great pitcher upon his return. Cashman mentioned Bumgarner as someone he will look into and rightfully so. He is a god in the postseason and could look for less years and money than someone like Gerrit Cole.
In the end, the Yankees could end up with someone along the lines of Zach Wheeler and he is a very good pitcher but the expectations will certainly rise for the Yankees if they get their hands on one of the big three.
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