Yankees Fans Were Always in Denial Over Kyle Tucker

New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman revealed at the MLB Winter Meetings that Kyle Tucker did not visit the Yankees and that it doesn't seem like Cashman intends to meet with him, which, expectedly, drew plenty of ire from New York fans.

But honestly, what did you expect?

Tucker is slated to land a contract in the neighborhood of $400 million, and we know that Hal Steinbrenner isn't thrilled about the idea of increasing payroll. Cody Bellinger — who is significantly cheaper and not far worse as a player — was always going to be the more realistic option.

So why are Yankees fans surprised?

Tucker is a terrific player, but he turns 29 years old next month and isn't a generational talent. He has also shown pretty significant signs of defensive decline the past two seasons.

And like Cashman said, the Bronx Bombers are already too lefty-heavy as it is.

Realistically speaking, Tucker never really fit the profile of what New York is looking for.

If the Yankees signed the four-time All-Star, they wouldn't have any money left in the till to do anything else. They merely would have been replacing Bellinger with Tucker (which isn't the massive upgrade some may think) and would not have been able to address any other issues.

Wouldn't it be smarter to re-sign Bellinger and still have resources left over to plug some other holes, like finding another starting pitcher, repairing the bullpen and maybe adding another bat?

These aren't your father's Yankees. The days of George Steinbrenner splurging on every big-name free agent available are long over. George would have re-signed Bellinger and signed Tucker. But that just isn't the way Hal operates.

I actually did think there was a slight chance both could happen earlier in the season, but then, Trent Grisham accepted his $22 million qualifying offer, entirely ruling out any chance of New York having a lineup that included both Bellinger and Tucker in 2026.

A perfect offseason for the Yankees would include retaining Bellinger, swinging a trade for a frontline pitcher, adding a couple of relievers and maybe acquiring another position player. Ketel Marte is probably a bit unrealistic, but there should be other names available.

Tucker was never going to be a part of this, and to be quite frank, that's just fine. He isn't Barry Bonds. The Yankees will be just fine missing out on him so long as they take care of business elsewhere, which actually may end up being the more pressing issue this winter.