After reports earlier this week that the New York Yankees recently passed on the chance to sign All-Star free agent Marcus Stroman, a new report claims the organization has changed its stance and is now in talks with the New York native.
The Yankees entered the offseason with several needs and addressed a few of them in one fell swoop in December when they made a blockbuster trade for All-Star outfielder Juan Soto. Yet, while the young star will improve their lineup immensely, upgrading the rotation behind American League Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole was the primary goal this winter.
Related: New York Yankees reportedly turned down free agent All-Star ‘seriously interested’ in joining team
That is why the organization made a hard push to sign gifted Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto last month. Unfortunately, despite being one of the favorites in the chase and willing to pay him as much as $300 million, the Yankees came up short in the chase to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Since then there have been reports linking the team to top top-line free agents like Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery. As well as rumblings of a trade pursuit for Chicago White Sox ace Dylan Cease. Yet one pitcher they allegedly had little interest in was two-time All-Star Marcus Stroman. Even after a recent report claimed his representation reached out to the organization about his interest in returning to his native New York.
New York Yankees are now the favorites to sign Marcus Stroman
Well, things have quickly changed. On Wednesday morning, MLB Network league insider Jon Morosi revealed that “The Yankees have emerged as the top candidate to sign Marcus Stroman, source says. I’m told the sides have had productive discussions in recent days.”
The decision to target Stroman may be based on the current asking prices for Snell, Montgomery, and Cease being pretty high, and Japanese ace Shota Imanaga coming off the market yesterday when he chose to sign with the Chicago Cubs.
- Marcus Stroman stats (2023): 10-9, 3.95 ERA, 1.259 WHIP, 119 SO, 136.2 IP
The Yankees fanbase knows Stroman well since he became a star during his first six and a half seasons with the Blue Jays before being traded to inner-city rivals the Mets in 2019. He had a strong season for the Cubs this season and earned All-Star honors. However, he opted out of the final year of his deal and rubbed many fans and Chicago executives the wrong way with comments about his long-term contract situation during the season.