New York Yankees: five free agents team should re-sign

Five Free Agents the New York Yankees Should Keep

Austin Romine

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Austin Romine has spent his entire career with the Yankees organization. Since 2011, when he made his MLB debut, he’s been a reliable backup catcher, filling in for the likes of regulars Jorge Posada, Russel Martin, Brian McCann, and now Gary Sanchez.

In that time span, Romine has established himself as a decent defensive catcher while also improving his presence at the batter’s box. In fact, in 2019, Romine had his best offensive season in pinstripes, hitting a career-high .281.

Fortunately for Romine, the catchers market is weak this season and is laced with backups. While Romine probably isn’t an everyday catcher on any MLB team, few organizations have a backup as reliable.

PREDICTION

Austin Romines stays in New York on a 1-year deal worth close to $2M.

David Hale

Given that there aren’t many attractive options at relief pitching on the market this season, the Yankees can’t go wrong with David Hale. After a rocky start to the 2019 MLB season, he managed to settle in and pitch quite decently by the end of the season.

So much so that in his final 12 appearances (of 20 total), Hale actually pitched to a 2.55 ERA while allowing 0 HR in 17.2 IP.

Make no mistake, Hale won’t be a replacement for a top tier relief pitcher. He is, however, a reliable option on the back end, and an inexpensive one at that.

PREDICTION

Offer an arbitration deal worth $750,000 or let him walk.