“The Yankees and free-agent starter Marcus Stroman continue to have mutual interest, which began in November at the GM meetings, with the Yankees still searching for another front-line starter on the free agent and trade markets,” Nightengale said.

The Yankees made a pair of trades to revamp their outfield and lineup, acquiring Alex Verdugo, Trent Grisham and Juan Soto. New York had its sights set on Japanese pitching sensation Yoshinobu Yamamoto as well and made a hard charge to sign him. He ultimately decided to join Shohei Ohtani and a band of other stars with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Yankees have to turn elsewhere now to find another frontline starter to pair with ace Gerrit Cole. Perhaps Carlos Rodon and Nestor Cortes will bounce back from injury-riddled seasons, but New York still wants to ensure their rotation has depth in 2024.

Stroman in pinstripes?

Marcus Stroman was arguably the best pitcher in the MLB during the first half of the 2023 season. He had 14 quality starts across his first 19 appearances and carried a 2.76 ERA into July.

He earned the second All-Star selection of his nine-year career as he entered the break with a 9-6 record and a 2.96 ERA.

His second half was plagued by injury though and Stroman managed to only start six games, making two more appearances in relief on back-to-back nights in September. He posted an 8.63 ERA across 24 innings after the All-Star break, finishing the year with a 3.95 ERA in 27 games.

Marcus Stroman opted out of the final year of his contract with the Chicago Cubs and is likely looking to land another multi-year deal. Could the Yankees bring in Stroman to bolster the rotation? There are worse options for your third or fourth starter.