Yankees Rumors: A.J. Burnett, Phil Hughes and the DH
By Editorial Staff
Recent rumors surrounding the New York Yankees have been about how the club will fill its designated hitter role for the 2012 season. While many figured the Yankees would look to the free agent market for their next DH, general manager Brian Cashman told reporters yesterday that he will first look to fill the void left by Jesus Montero through a trade. This has caused names like A.J. Burnett and Phil Hughes to be floated as potential trade candidates.
During yesterday’s press conference to officially discuss the Michael Pineda/Jesus Montero swap, Cashman told reporters that he will “first and foremost” try and acquire a hitter via the trade market. The general manager said that free agency will be his secondary focus while trying to fill the Yankees opening at DH.
Cashman noted that the Yankees have had to stretch their payroll in order to acquire free agents (Hiroki Kuroda) this winter and that the club has little left to spend on a bat.
As far as who he would look to trade to acquire a bat, Cashman hinted that he could possibly use his newly acquired excess in pitching to bring in a hitter.
Now that New York’s added Pineda and Kuroda, Burnett and Hughes could fall into this expendable category. Burnett’s price tag makes him a hard player to move, while the Yankees reportedly would like to trade Hughes for a young, controllable hitter.
If the Yankees were able to free up salary through a trade, they have plenty of options remaining on the free agent market to choose from. Still available are veteran players Raul Ibanez, Hideki Matsui, Vladimir Guerrero and Johnny Damon.
For more on the Yankees, be sure to check out Yanks Go Yard.
You can check out all of the available free agents by position below.