Yankees Linked To Cy Young Award Winner To Fix Rotation After Missing Yoshinobu Yamamoto

Could New York land the multi-time Cy Young Award winner this offseason?

The New York Yankees seemingly had a shot to land former Orix Buffaloes ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto but didn't get their man.

Yamamoto was the most highly-coveted free-agent pitcher on the market and landed with the Los Angeles Dodgers on a massive deal. New York still needs to add to the starting rotation, though.

Luckily for the Yankees, there still are some hurlers available who could be an upgrade for New York. One pitcher who could make sense for the Yankees is San Diego Padres star Blake Snell, according to SNY's Anthony McCarron.

"Blake Snell, who won the (National League) Cy Young this past season, is the top free agent starter remaining on the market, and ex-Yank Jordan Montgomery is next," McCarron said. "Either would represent a needed upgrade in a Yankee rotation that is currently populated by ace Gerrit Cole, two lefties who had tough 2023s (Carlos Rodón and Nestor Cortes), and Clarke Schmidt. Question marks abound, no?

"Snell was 14-9 with an MLB-best 2.25 ERA for the Padres in 2023. He allowed just 5.8 hits per nine innings, the best in baseball. But he also led the majors in walks. While he also won the (American League) Cy Young with Tampa Bay in 2018, he’s never gotten even a single vote in another season."

The 31-year-old will be expensive but would be a major pickup for New York. He is a two-time Cy Young Award winner and led the National League with an impressive 2.25 ERA in 2023. 

New York clearly has money to spend -- it offered Yamamoto a contract worth $300 million -- so why not land the two-time Cy Young Award winner?