It appears the New York Yankees may just go after Manny Machado after all. There is a catch though
There’s going to be a million of these stories coming out, especially with the GM meetings starting this week. There were different reports all last week about the New York Yankees and whether or not they will go after Manny Machado. In my estimation, I would not count the New York Yankees out of anything this off-season until that player actually signs. The latest from Jon Heyman would coincide with that idea.
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Yankees will look into Machado, and it will depend on the price. Pitching is the priority though (and as said here, with Corbin and Happ top the list)
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 5, 2018
It appears the New York Yankees are taking the Pawn Stars approach to Machado. They like him, but they have to get him for the right price on their terms.
With Didi Gregorius expected to miss quite a bit of the season recovering from Tommy John surgery, the New York Yankees do have a hole at shortstop. However, Gleyber Torres can play there and they can target a second baseman who can play multiple spots for when Gregorius comes back. Someone like Marwin Gonzalez comes to mind.
Machado’s best defensive position is third base, no matter how much Machado views himself as a shortstop. Miguel Andujar was there last year, but there are questions about his defense moving forward at third base.
The New York Yankees are in a spot where most of their core is on the cheap side and they reset their tax obligations. They can go out and add some pieces in free agency, and they have to if they are going to beat the Red Sox.
However, the New York Yankees would be better served using that big money on Patrick Corbin, or maybe trying to absorb Zack Greinke‘s contract instead of throwing mega bucks at a player who doesn’t necessarily fill a natural hole on the roster. Until Machado actually signs I wouldn’t count them out, however, he’s not the direction I would go in.