3 Starting Pitchers Yankees Need to Sign While James Paxton is Out
By Jerry Trotta
The New York Yankees are fully-loaded with a World Series or bust mindset entering the 2020 campaign. They are also hopeful that their impossibly-dreadful injury luck from last season is, well, a thing of the past.
Unfortunately for skipper Aaron Boone, things got off to a rough start on that front. The Yanks announced this week that starter James Paxton would miss three to four months of the season after undergoing an operation to remove a cyst in his back.
Brian Cashman said that multiple doctors evaluated James Paxton after the season. They agreed to treat his back injury conservatively and did not recommend surgery. #Yankees were alerted about 4-6 weeks ago that Paxton was experiencing increased discomfort.
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) February 5, 2020
The logic behind waiting until now -- with Spring Training right around the corner after having an entire offseason -- for Paxton to have this procedure is non-existent. Boone now has a gaping hole in his rotation to fill. Lucky for him, there are a few capable hurlers still braving the free agency waters.
3. Jason Vargas
By no means would Vargas be a sexy addition, but his inclusion in this list speaks to how bereft the market for pitchers is right now. New York will need somebody to eat up innings in Paxton's place, and Vargas compiled 149.2 between the Mets and Phillies in 2019.
2. Taijuan Walker
If you forget the name, it's probably because Walker has been limited to just four starts over the last two seasons due to injury. The 27-year-old right-hander obviously comes with risk, but he appears to be over his injury woes. Walker even threw for scouts recently and is said to have impressed, which means that he will be on the radar of some clubs before long. The Yankees should jump ahead of the pack and pull the trigger. They could do a lot worse than a pitcher with a 3.95 ERA in 94 career starts.
1. Collin McHugh
McHugh is likely the best free agent pitcher available right now. The only problem is that he's featured primarily as a reliever for the Astros since 2017, accumulating just 20 starts in that span. Elbow soreness saw him left off Houston's postseason roster. If healthy, and we'd be surprised if he isn't this deep into the offseason, the 32-year-old right-hander could prove to be a steal for the Yankees.