Hal Steinbrenner: Everything’s on table for Yankees in free agency after ‘unacceptable’ season
The 2023 season didn’t go as planned for the Yankees.
After adding top left-hander Carlos Rodon in free agency and giving some of their up-and-coming talent a chance out of spring training, New York was expected to be one of the favorites in the American League East.
Instead, they completely flopped.
Rodon got hurt and looked nothing like himself after returning, Aaron Judge missed time due to a toe injury suffered colliding into the outfield wall in Los Angeles, and the offense struggled mightily.
The Yanks went on to finish just two games over the .500 mark, which put them in fourth place in the division, and they were eliminated from playoff contention in late September for the first time since 2016.
Simply put, it was a major disappointment for all, and that’s exactly how owner Hal Steinbrenner summed it up speaking for the first time since season’s end on Tuesday afternoon.
“It was awful,” he said. “We accomplished nothing. We didn’t win the division, we didn’t make the playoffs, didn’t win a series in the playoffs, much less a championship. We had a winning record but that’s a requirement not an accomplishment as far as I’m concerned.
“Very bad year, the fans didn’t get anywhere close to what they deserve.”
The Bombers are going to need to have a very busy offseason if they hope to retool this roster and turn things around. And Steinbrenner says they’ve already been discussing potential additions.
“We’ll be active as we always are on the free agent and trade markets,” he said. “As always, money comes off the payroll, my family does everything we can to put it back in and that’s not going to be any different this year.”
New York has been rumored to have interest in some of the top available names on the market, such as Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto. With such wide interest around the league, though, the right-hander certainly will cost a pretty penny.
Though the Yankees already have four players on their payroll signed to nine-figure contracts (Judge, Gerrit Cole, Giancarlo Stanton, and Rodon), Steinbrenner wouldn’t rule out the possibility of adding another this offseason.
“Everything’s on the table when it comes to free agents,” he said. “We’re all very passionate about this, we’re working our ass off and we’re going to do everything we can to right the ship for 2024.”
