Via Jon Heyman: The Yankees have a long list of free agent targets this winter, a list that includes right-handers Bronson Arroyo, Scott Feldman, and Dan Haren. The team is expected to be active during the GM Meetings next week. “[Hal Steinbrenner] is very involved and he wants to win,” said one source to Heyman while Scott Boras said the team has “been very aggressive.”
Arroyo, 36, had a 3.79 ERA (4.49 FIP) in 202 innings for the Reds this season. I have no interest in him for reasons I outlined in this recent mailbag. The 30-year-old Feldman had a 3.86 EA (4.03 FIP) in 181.2 innings for the Cubs and Orioles this year and I think he’s got a chance to be a real bargain, at least when compared to the asking prices being thrown out there by Ervin Santana ($100M) and Ricky Nolasco ($80M). Haren, 33, had a 4.67 ERA (4.09 FIP) in 169.2 innings for the Nationals in 2013 and was much better after spending two weeks on the DL to clear his head. The Yankees tried to acquire him in September as they made one last push for a postseason spot.
Heyman notes Hal and team ownership in general has gotten more involved in the decision-making process these last few months and … well, duh. That was obvious. He says the team’s brass is not blaming Brian Cashman for missing the playoffs and the decision to make Curtis Granderson the qualifying offer was his call. I’ve said this more times than I care to count over the last year or two: I understand no GM ever truly has autonomy, but I don’t like ownership taking a hands-on approach to roster building. Let the baseball ops people make the baseball decisions.
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