Can the Yankees afford to wait out Aaron Judge’s decision before addressing other roster needs?
After all, even with Judge having the best season of his career and arguably the greatest season in Yankee history, the Bombers were still clearly inferior to the eventual champion Astros, and big free agents like Justin Verlander and Trea Turner are signing quickly as the Winter Meetings are underway.
“It’s difficult, but at the same time, we have a really strong roster,” Brian Cashman said. “We lost a lot of important pieces along the way in season, so getting them back and healthy will be important. We got Gleyber Torres playing winter ball right now, so we’re keeping track of our players, and we have some young guys pushing up.
“Without a doubt, we’re trying to improve in some cases on the fringes and the edges, and we have a vacancy in left field, certainly have a big vacancy in right field, and you always want to improve your pitching.”
Still, Cashman made it clear that Judge is the top priority, but even while those negotiations continue, other moves are being explored.
“We’re certainly having some exploratory trade talks and staying in touch with the free agent group,” Cashman said. “But the big-ticket item, Aaron Judge, is obviously going to take some time.”
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