REPORT: New York Yankees Considering Shocking $168 Million Move

The New York Yankees finally made a notable offseason addition earlier this week, acquiring pitcher Ryan Weathers in a trade with the Miami Marlins.

But apparently, the Yankees are on the hunt for more arms.

It was recently reported that New York is still pursuing starting pitchers in spite of its acquisition of Weathers, and Milwaukee Brewers star Freddy Peralta as well as Washington Nationals left-hander MacKenzie Gore were once again floated as trade possibilities.

But is it possible the Yankees could actually land a frontline starter in free agency?

Jon Heyman of The New York post pitched the possibility on Thursday, revealing that the Yanks have checked in on former Houston Astros pitcher Framber Valdez.

Considering ESPN projected Valdez to land a $168 million contract on the open market and just about everyone assumes he will bag a deal worth $150 million or more, this is definitely a strange potential move on the part of the Yankees.

While Valdez has actually been a durable pitcher for the vast majority of his career, he is 32 years old, and he logged a 3.66 ERA in 2025. That was Valdez's highest mark since becoming a full-time starter in 2021.

It should be noted that aside from the lefty issuing more walks than usual this past season, his peripherals were actually fine. He managed a 3.37 FIP, which was actually below his lifetime average of 3.51. He also averaged 8.8 strikeouts per nine innings, identical to his career mean.

But would New York really want to hand a lucrative long-term contract to a hurler who is already well into his 30s?

For a Yankees squad that is evidently monitoring its payroll very closely, Valdez doesn't really make much sense. Especially after just landing Weathers.

New York will be without Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon to begin the season, but both pitchers are expected back within the first couple of months. Adding Valdez into the mix would seriously complicate things for the rotation.

Yes, it's true that too much pitching depth is always a good thing, but you also have to be mindful of how you allocate your resources.

Of course, it's entirely possible that the Yanks merely placed a call to Valdez's agent just to gauge his market value, but if the Yankees are seriously interested in signing the veteran, it would certainly represent a stark deviation from what everyone anticipated.