New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone has closed the book on one big potential trade.
All offseason long, the New York Yankees have been in the market for starting pitching, with Freddy Peralta, MacKenzie Gore and even Tarik Skubal floated as possibilities.
Well, Peralta and Gore were traded elsewhere, and Skubal is ultimately staying put in Detroit. For now.
The Yankees did acquire Ryan Weathers in a surprise trade with the Miami Marlins, but even after landing Weathers, there were reports that New York was searching for more arms in its rotation.
Well, manager Aaron Boone basically closed the door on that possibility over the weekend, claiming that the Yankees' starting rotation is set while discussing the injury returns of Carlos Rodon and Gerrit Cole.
"Obviously, we want to make sure [Rodon's] built up properly, but I don’t expect it to be too long," Boone said on MLB Network Radio. "Gerrit’s been doing great, but again, not something where we’re going to certainly rush him. But yeah, I do feel good about it. We’re talking about probably [Max] Fried, [Cam] Schlittler, [Will] Warren, [Ryan] Weathers, and [Luis] Gil to start the season in the rotation."
New York Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodon. Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images.So essentially, New York is happy with the rotation as it currently stands, which shouldn't come much of a shock given how stacked it is when healthy.
Of course, Cole is a big question mark. He missed all of last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, and he has not pitched a full season since 2023. Not only that, but he's 35 years old.
Rodon underwent an elbow cleanout after the Yanks were eliminated from the playoffs, so there doesn't seem to be much — if any — concern there. But he still had surgery, so the Yankees need to be prudent with his recovery.
At this point, New York will almost surely head into 2026 with its starting pitching staff as currently constructed and then make any necessary adjustments before the trade deadline in early August.
What will be interesting, though, is what happens when Cole and Rodon do return. Because then, the Yankees will have a seven-man rotation, and they almost certainly aren't keeping all of those hurlers.
That being said, injuries almost always happen, so maybe New York will just be content to have the extra depth.
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