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NEW YORK -- Let the spending begin.
Following weeks of speculation regarding how they might handle this offseason's crop of free agents, the Yankees can now set their plans -- and their wallets -- in motion. Major League Baseball's free-agent signing period officially began Friday at midnight ET, freeing the Bombers to discuss contract details with free agents from other teams.
"I will be asleep, I would hope, at midnight tonight," general manager Brian Cashman joked on Thursday, just hours before the deadline. "But starting tomorrow, it's a new day in terms of the ability to engage free agents, so we will proceed accordingly."
First up on the Yankees' wish list is starting pitching, and they're likely to sign some of the best starters that the free-agent market has to offer. It's a good bet that New York will pursue 28-year-old left-hander CC Sabathia as aggressively as possible, perhaps even offering him more than the six-year, $137.5 million deal Johan Santana signed with the Mets last winter.
If the Yankees don't sign Sabathia -- or even if they do -- the club will likely pursue some of the market's other top starting pitchers as well, including right-handers Derek Lowe and A.J. Burnett.
"It's early in the winter," Cashman said late Thursday afternoon. "Our main focus is to try to improve our pitching staff, and that has not changed."
Those comments came only moments after the Yankees announced they had acquired Nick Swisher, a power-hitting first baseman and outfielder, in exchange for three players. And though that much didn't alter their offseason plans, it did cool speculation that the club might pursue first baseman Mark Teixeira on the open market. It's more likely now that New York will focus solely on pitching.
Cashman also addressed his bullpen situation earlier this week, signing lefty reliever Damaso Marte to a new three-year deal. That took care of one other pressing need, before the Yankees could even do the bulk of their offseason shopping.
"We're not necessarily the type of club that is just looking for one starter," manager Joe Girardi said on Thursday.
Among the Yankees' top priorities will be first determining whether Mike Mussina will retire or pitch another year, and then deciding whether or not to retain him, Andy Pettitte, or both. Pettitte has already expressed a desire to return to the Bombers, but if Mussina returns, the club would need to find only one starter to join him, Chien-Ming Wang, Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes in the rotation. Sabathia would represent a clear upgrade over just about anyone, and so there is a chance that New York wouldn't pursue Pettitte at all.
And that's a reality of free agency -- teams lose players. The Yankees could lose plenty of notable ones, considering that they might not sign any of a group that includes Bobby Abreu, Jason Giambi, Carl Pavano, Sidney Ponson and Ivan Rodriguez. Instead, with those weighty salaries all off the books, New York is liable to spend nearly all of its available money on pitching.
Following weeks of speculation regarding how they might handle this offseason's crop of free agents, the Yankees can now set their plans -- and their wallets -- in motion. Major League Baseball's free-agent signing period officially began Friday at midnight ET, freeing the Bombers to discuss contract details with free agents from other teams.
"I will be asleep, I would hope, at midnight tonight," general manager Brian Cashman joked on Thursday, just hours before the deadline. "But starting tomorrow, it's a new day in terms of the ability to engage free agents, so we will proceed accordingly."
First up on the Yankees' wish list is starting pitching, and they're likely to sign some of the best starters that the free-agent market has to offer. It's a good bet that New York will pursue 28-year-old left-hander CC Sabathia as aggressively as possible, perhaps even offering him more than the six-year, $137.5 million deal Johan Santana signed with the Mets last winter.
If the Yankees don't sign Sabathia -- or even if they do -- the club will likely pursue some of the market's other top starting pitchers as well, including right-handers Derek Lowe and A.J. Burnett.
"It's early in the winter," Cashman said late Thursday afternoon. "Our main focus is to try to improve our pitching staff, and that has not changed."
Those comments came only moments after the Yankees announced they had acquired Nick Swisher, a power-hitting first baseman and outfielder, in exchange for three players. And though that much didn't alter their offseason plans, it did cool speculation that the club might pursue first baseman Mark Teixeira on the open market. It's more likely now that New York will focus solely on pitching.
Cashman also addressed his bullpen situation earlier this week, signing lefty reliever Damaso Marte to a new three-year deal. That took care of one other pressing need, before the Yankees could even do the bulk of their offseason shopping.
"We're not necessarily the type of club that is just looking for one starter," manager Joe Girardi said on Thursday.
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And that's a reality of free agency -- teams lose players. The Yankees could lose plenty of notable ones, considering that they might not sign any of a group that includes Bobby Abreu, Jason Giambi, Carl Pavano, Sidney Ponson and Ivan Rodriguez. Instead, with those weighty salaries all off the books, New York is liable to spend nearly all of its available money on pitching.
