The Yankees may be looking to trim their starting rotation openings from two jobs to one.
The team has “checked in” on free agent lefty Travis Wood, though they don’t appear to be the favorites to land him, according to FanRag’s Jon Heyman.
Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda and CC Sabathia are the only starters whose jobs are all but guaranteed going into spring training, which starts next week. They’re all righties.
A competition between five righties is scheduled to decide the last two spots: Luis Severino, Luis Cessa, Adam Warren and Chad Green. Each of them is unproven as a major-league starting pitcher.
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A few things on the Yankees potential pursuit of Wood:
1.) What’s he done lately: Wood, 30, had a solid year for the Cubs in 2016 … in relief. He posted a 2.77 ERA in 61 innings over 77 games, though his strikeout rate (6.9 K/9) was way down from his career high (10.5 K/9) from 2015.
2.) So, the Yankees want him as a starter?: Maybe. Or at least a starting candidate with relief potential. He hasn’t been a full-time starter since 2014, when he went 8-13 with a 5.03 ERA. The year before, he was an All-Star, going 9-12 with a 3.11 ERA.
3.) A not-great fit?: Wood is a flyball pitcher who doesn’t throw hard. Yes, he’s a lefty, and that helps. But the Yankees tend to gravitate hard throwers with strikeout or groundout tendencies.
4.) At least some salary maneuverability: The Yankees may not be completely cash-strapped. While they’re not looking to add a ton of payroll, they did agree with slugger Chris Carter to a one-year, $3.5-million deal on Tuesday. So if Wood’s price tag falls to the right spot, Cashman could pounce.
Brendan Kuty may be reached at bkuty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanKutyNJ. Find NJ.com Yankees on Facebook.
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