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Matt Bush Undergoes Shoulder Surgery

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Rangers righty Matt Bush has undergone a procedure to his right shoulder, as MLB.com’s TR Sullivan was among those to report (Twitter links). Specifically, Dr. James Andrews performed an arthroscopic acromioclavicular (AC) join resection.

That’s not the best news, clearly, but the hope seems to be that it’ll put to rest a problem that had hobbled Bush in a somewhat disappointing 2017 season. The expectation is that he’ll be ready to participate fully in Spring Training, which is certainly fairly promising.

Bush, 31, had returned from a lengthy absence from professional baseball to debut with aplomb in 2016. But he couldn’t quite hold the same edge over a full season in 2017, when he worked to a 3.78 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 over 52 1/3 frames.

While Bush carried much the same blistering velocity (around 98 mph) and swinging-strike rate (12-13%) that he did last year, he wasn’t as successful at managing contact. Opposing hitters boasted a much stronger collective batting average on balls in play (.329 vs. .245) and home run rate (1.20 per nine vs. 0.58).

Still, there’s plenty of reason to think that Bush can keep providing value if he’s able to get back to full health. Given that he played in the field early on and went through an extended mid-career layoff, Bush has little in the way of mileage on his arm.

Dustin Pedroia Undergoes Knee Surgery

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Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia underwent surgery on his left knee today, according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Glove (via Twitter). The team has announced that the “cartilage restoration procedure” will keep Pedroia from game action for approximately seven months.

If he stays on schedule, then, it seems the best case is that the 34-year-old Pedroia will miss approximately the first two months of the 2018 season. He also required a procedure on the same joint last October. He was able to work back to health over the offseason, but suffered further injury after taking a hard slide and ended up dealing with inflammation over the course of the 2017 campaign.

 

Pedroia remains a key part of the Boston plans, of course. He’s slated to earn $56MM through the 2021 season under the extension he signed in the summer of 2013. It’s fair to wonder, though, whether the Sox would be best-served buttressing their infield depth for the coming season.

That being said, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski suggests to Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston that a significant move won’t be needed to account for the surgery. Given the timing and existing depth options, Dombrowski says this procedure and that of lefty Eduardo Rodriguez “do not really affect [the Red Sox’] offseason plans.” Indeed, the team does have some infielders with MLB experience — Brock Holt, Deven Marrero, Tzu-Wei Lin, Josh Rutledge, and Marco Hernandez — that could conceivably fill in, though all come with questions.

Notably, too, Dombrowski says that the team is optimistic about Pedroia’s ability to return to effectiveness. And it would surely be premature to doubt a player of Pedroia’s stature and long-lauded toughness. Indeed, there’s plenty of reason to believe he can still play at a fairly high level as he reaches his mid-thirties. Even when battling through injury in 2017, Pedroia turned in a .293/.369/.392 batting line. While that’s shy of his typical output, including his work in the prior two seasons, it still represents league-average productivity with the bat. Perhaps some of the power will return with better health.

At the same time, Pedroia’s defensive and baserunning metrics have declined quite a bit of late. Though he’s still generally valued as a positive in the field, Fangraphs’ BsR measure paints him as a significantly below-average runner. In the aggregate, given his age and injury history, there’s also cause quite some uncertainty as to Pedroia’s future outlook.

Some may wonder why it took this long for the move. Dombrowski explained, though, that the surgery was accomplished as soon as possible once it was decided upon. Understandably, Pedroia first spent some time assessing his options with doctors, as it’s not a minor procedure. Sox righty Steven Wright, who’s still working back from the same thing, detailed an “excruciating” and ultimately lengthy recover in a recent conversation with WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford.

 

Marlins To Meet With Stanton After World Series

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Marlins star Giancarlo Stanton, who will enter the offseason as the most-watched trade candidate in baseball, said in an appearance last night on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” that he is slated to meet with the team’s new ownership group after the World Series ends. (Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald was among those to report on the comments.)

It’s a bit surprising to learn that Stanton hasn’t yet sat down with the incoming owners, who have been led publicly by surefire Hall-of-Famer Derek Jeter. His no-trade protection, after all, gives him full veto authority over any trade, so Stanton’s own preferences will weigh heavily in dictating the Miami organization’s freedom of action this winter.

As I explored in discussing the Marlins’ offseason options just yesterday, the team’s reported intentions to drop payroll to the $90MM level seem to make a Stanton deal rather likely. Particularly given that the slugger is coming off of an excellent season that boosted his profile and marketability, Stanton will hold quite a lot of appeal to other organizations. But the Marlins can scarcely afford to hang onto him at that payroll level, and almost certainly can’t afford to do so while also seeking to acquire new MLB talent to boost a moribund pitching staff.

Stanton fielded some questions from Kimmel about possible destinations. While it’s possible to read something into the responses, it largely seems that Stanton ably handled them without giving away anything of substance. He did acknowledge he “grew up a Dodger fan” and hinted he’d have little trouble approving a deal to send him to the National League champs, though that’s hardly surprising. Stanton also said he’d be willing to spend some time as a DH when asked about the Red Sox as a landing spot, though again that was hardly a committed response. And the slugger quipped that he “like[s] beating up on the Mets” when asked about that (seemingly unlikely) destination, that hardly seems to dictate anything about his future.

Ultimately, all that’s really known about Stanton’s preferences, per Jackson, is that he does not wish to endure a rebuild. Even then, it’s all but impossible at this point to know whether the star would consider a move to a team that is just opening a competitive window. Given that he has yet even to discuss the situation with the team’s new top decisionmakers, it seems fair to say that the potential offseason drama has yet even to begin in earnest.

Orioles To Re-Sign Luis Sardinas

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The Orioles struck a minor-league deal to re-sign infielder Luis Sardinas, according to Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. He had played with the club on a minors deal in 2017.

Sardinas, who’s still just 24 years of age, landed in Baltimore late in May via waiver claim. He had opened the year with the Padres, struggling to a .163/.226/.163 slash in 53 plate appearances to open the season. The O’s promptly outrighted him to Triple-A Norfolk.

Things went better at the plate for Sardinas after the move. He posted a .319/.348/.419 batting line and hit five home runs (a personal best) in his 331 trips to the plate at the highest level of the minors.

If he can sustain palatable offensive numbers, Sardinas could be a useful piece given his highly regarded glove. Perhaps there’s still hope his bat will come around at some point, but Tim Beckham will have first dibs on the shortstop job in Baltimore. For now, the O’s will likely consider Sardinas as a utility candidate in Spring Training.

Offseason Outlook: Miami Marlins

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MLBTR is publishing Offseason Outlooks for all 30 teams.  Click here to read the other entries in this series.

The Marlins could hold the key to the offseasons of many other organizations, as new ownership (led by CEO Derek Jeter) will reassess the team’s direction after a disappointing 2017 campaign.

Guaranteed Contracts

Contract Options

Arbitration-Eligible Players (service time in parentheses; projections via MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz)

Free Agents

[Marlins Depth Chart; Marlins Payroll Information]

Jeter seems to be tweaking, rather than overhauling, the team’s baseball operations department, which will still be led by Michael Hill. But with new decisionmakers at the top of the food chain and key new execs installed downstream (in particular, Gary Denbo), the Marlins seem ripe for at least a partial roster overhaul.

Financial pressures will surely weigh in. Though incoming ownership is surely hoping that an improved business and baseball approach can turn the club into an annually profitable undertaking, that won’t be the case right off the bat. There are continued whispers that the purchase price was high and that the ownership group isn’t quite as firm, financially speaking, as might have been hoped.

Whatever the precise cause, rumor has it that Jeter and his charges will be looking to significantly reduce the team’s payroll this winter, perhaps as far south as $90MM. That’s hardly unfamiliar territory; indeed, the organization has only twice cracked nine figures and has otherwise never gone over $75MM in Opening Day payroll. But after several investments drove last year’s franchise-record $115MM+ slate of salaries, it’s a big drop. Since the existing guarantees and projected arbitration payouts would alone push the team into the $130MM range, the reported target likely portends some major trades.

Much of the speculation thus far has focused on slugger Giancarlo Stanton — for good reason. He nearly reached 60 long balls last year, will just 28 years of age over the offseason, and is going to begin earning annual salaries in excess of $25MM in 2018. While the overall contractual guarantee remains daunting, perhaps it’s an approximately market rate of annual pay for a player of Stanton’s abilities. His appeal is unlikely to be higher than it is now, after he raised his national profile with his dinger barrage and turned in a productive and healthy overall season.

Giancarlo Stanton

Though Stanton is an obvious trade candidate, his contract is hardly a straightforward asset to deal. From a PR standpoint, it’s hard to move a player of such prominence, though perhaps the ownership change also represents an opportune moment to turn a new leaf. Stanton enjoys full no-trade protection, but he has indicated he would rather not hang out in Miami for a rebuild. The post-2020 opt-out may perhaps give some other teams some pause if asked to give up significant young assets (quite apart from the lofty total contract price). Sufficient future payroll capacity will be an obvious prerequisite to acquiring Stanton. As of yet, the market situation is mostly undeveloped, but there’s been (in some cases speculative) mention of teams like the Phillies, Giants, and Red Sox as potential suitors.

There are any number of fascinating scenarios that could be dreamed up regarding Stanton, depending upon the precise motivations of the teams involved. Will the new Miami leadership be willing to keep some of the money (or take on an underperforming veteran in the swap) to increase the prospect return? Or is the primary goal to realign the balance sheets? And might other veteran Marlins players even potentially enter trade talks as the various teams seek to structure mutually beneficial scenarios?

There are plenty of other conceivable trade candidates on Miami’s roster, especially on the position-player side. In all likelihood, the offseason changes will be driven more by trade interest from rivals than by any specific needs the Marlins wish to address. It’s possible that the club will move Stanton but mostly otherwise keep together its relatively affordable and youthful core. But it’s equally conceivable — and perhaps advisable — that the organization will rip the band-aid off all at once.

Other teams are no doubt eyeing swaths of Miami’s roster as players to consider pursuing over the offseason. Outfielders Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna will hold even more appeal than Stanton to many organizations, given Yelich’s eminently affordable contract and Ozuna’s reasonably priced projected salary. There are loads of sluggers that can be had for cheap, but first baseman Justin Bour still stands out as an ascendant and affordable hitter. Derek Dietrich could be a useful platoon piece for other clubs given the solid pop he brings along with defensive capacity (albeit not mastery) at the 3-4-5 spots in the infield as well as the corner outfield.

Miami’s best trade asset, though, could actually be catcher J.T. Realmuto. That’s due in large part to scarcity at the position; reliable everyday backstops are one of the game’s rarest assets. Realmuto, 26, is an above-average hitter and baserunner who comes with three more seasons of affordable control. He throws and blocks well. And while he once rated as a poor framer, there’s now a notable (and quite unusual) split: Stat Corner views him as a wreck at winning strikes, while Baseball Prospectus now sees Realmuto as an ace pitch sweetener.

Those players all carry excess value against their contractual commitments. In a wholesale sell-off scenario, the Fish could recoup serious young talent. Other players hold out more promise of freeing payroll space. Dee Gordon should draw some interest, though there are quite a few other second basemen available and his contract looks to be in range of his hypothetical open-market value. And though Martin Prado won’t be a hotly pursued commodity — he is coming off of an injury-plagued 2017 and turns 34 at the end of October — some clubs would surely take on some of his salary. The better bet, in Prado’s case, might be to hope that an early-season turnaround boosts his value at the trade deadline.

Any acquisitions on the position-player side will be dependent upon what happens with the long list of players just discussed. The Marlins could end up adding young MLB talent in trades. Or they could end up with some pretty distinct holes to be filled by seeking lower-priced veterans in free agency. Third baseman Brian Anderson is perhaps the best candidate to join JT Riddle as a new semi-regular. Otherwise, there isn’t much in the way of quality young talent pressing for MLB time from the upper minors, as most of the Marlins’ best prospects are pitchers and/or lower-level position players.

To the extent the Marlins really try to compete in 2018, the chief needs would be found in the pitching staff. And the team will need enough arms to make it through the season regardless, so odds are that it will at least pursue lower-cost and minor-league free agent candidates.

In the rotation, that could mean adding at least two or three arms. Another opening could be made if the Marlins decide to move righty Dan Straily. He turned in another solid season and offers surplus value to teams that want quality innings at a below-market rate. Straily’s projected $4.6MM salary would represent only represent a small fraction of the sum the Marlins reportedly hope to shed, but he could net some upper-level talent that could conceivably step onto the big league roster in the not-too-distant future. Affordable arms are always in demand, and Straily reportedly drew a fair bit of interest prior to the non-waiver deadline.

While the club would love to find a taker for its remaining obligations to lefty Wei-Yin Chen, that’s hard to imagine after he missed most of the season with a partial UCL tear that did not require surgery. Rather, he’ll be run out there if he’s healthy in hopes that he’ll give innings and perhaps regain his form. His ability to do so is no sure thing, though, as skipper Don Mattingly has questioned whether Chen will be able to pitch at all next season. It’s perhaps still theoretically possible that Edinson Volquez will make it back from Tommy John surgery late in 2018, but the Marlins can’t count on anything from him and aren’t likely to shed his $13MM commitment.

Otherwise, Jose Urena outperformed his peripherals but surely deserves a starting job. And the team’s aggressive promotion of Dillon Peters suggests a belief that he’s ready to shoulder a big load at the game’s highest level. He has typically shown excellent control, so he’ll no doubt pare back his 5.5 BB/9 debut walk rate, and there’s obvious promise in his 63.3% groundball rate. The team can also give more opportunities to southpaws Adam Conley, Justin Nicolino, Chris O’Grady and Jarlin Garcia (who may yet move from the ’pen back to the rotation) or dip further into the system, where Trevor Richards is one of the more interesting, near-term possibilities. Clearly, though, there’s cause for the front office to pursue some bounceback arms and perhaps make a selection in the Rule 5 Draft to pair with righty Odrisamer Despaigne as depth options.

The situation is rather similar in the bullpen, where there’s one interesting young potential trade candidate (Kyle Barraclough), two expensive veterans that did not quite live up to their salaries (Brad Ziegler and Junichi Tazawa), and a slate of inexperienced youngsters. The team could get something of interest back for Barraclough, who has four more years of team control and has averaged 12.1 K/9 with a sub-3.00 ERA in 163 big league innings. It’s also feasible that Miami could generate some interest in Ziegler following a strong finish to the season (especially if the Fish pay down some of his $9MM price tag), but that’d only mean opening yet more jobs at the MLB level. Regardless of what happens with the existing players, there’s an evident need to add plausible major-league arms, as Drew Steckenrider represents the only other young, controllable lock for a bullpen slot.

All things considered, the Marlins’ pitching staff is among the worst-positioned in baseball for near-term success. While there are some high-upside arms filtering northward, none seem likely to arrive soon, and recent top 10 overall picks Tyler Kolek (No. 2 in 2014) and Braxton Garrett (No. 7 in 2016) have both had Tommy John surgery. The organization has felt the pain of mortgaging the future already; for instance, while Straily worked out about as well as could have been hoped, he cost the team young flamethrower Luis Castillo, who has an exceedingly bright future and has already turned in 89 1/3 quality MLB innings for the Reds.

Fielding a competitive team would mean upgrading the pitching, which in turn would require some combination of: 1) weakening the position-player mix through trade; 2) spending more money; 3) parting with prospect capital; and 4) hitting on buy-low targets. With the Marlins looking to shave payroll and set the stage for a sustainable future, there’s little in the way of opportunity — let alone justification — for trying again to win with this basic roster mix.

Instead, it’s almost surely time for the organization to part with some of its best players in service of a new plan. How far they’ll go (along with how they’ll backfill) remains anyone’s guess — and also represents perhaps the most wide-reaching variable in the development of the overall player market this winter.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NL Notes: Seager, Cabrera, Braves, Dickey

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After going without him in the NLCS, the Dodgers have officially activated star shortstop Corey Seager for the World Series. Given his balky back, however, the team may look to  him as a DH for the games played in Houston, as J.P. Hoornstra writes in the Orange County Register. Those interested in some reading in advance of the Fall Classic may also like to check out the Register’s Bill Plunkett’s piece on the analytics-driven organizations squaring off this year.

Here’s more from the National League:

  • The Mets are “almost certain” to exercise their option over infielder Asdrubal Cabrera, according to a tweet from Marc Carig of Newsday. We have heard such indications previously, to be sure, though it’s fair to say there have been countervailing considerations as well. With much of the offseason planning likely already completed, though, the Mets seem largely to have decided upon a course. As I discussed about six weeks back, there’s a solid case to be made that Cabrera’s $8.5MM option will deliver greater value than the team could find by paying a $2MM buyout and pursuing an alternative. Most of MLBTR’s readers favored the Mets hanging onto Cabrera in the poll available at that link.
  • A former Braves scout has written a letter to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, in which he offers something of a different perspective on recently-resigned GM John Coppolella. The scout credited Coppolella for his respectful interactions with similarly situated employees, painting rather a different picture than some other accounts have. Of course, the letter does not seem to speak to any assessment of alleged international signing violations against Coppolella or others in the organization.
  • With Atlanta parting ways with R.A. Dickey, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer considers whether the veteran knuckler could make sense for the Reds. Dickey has indicated that Cincinnati is on a very short list of cities he’d consider playing in, given its proximity to his home in Nashville. But Rosecrans also suggests the Reds would likely not be willing to pay Dickey in quite the same range that the Braves did. The contract he signed last winter guaranteed $8MM, though he earned every penny with 190 innings of 4.26 ERA ball. That made it seem likely that the Braves would bring him back, with the move perhaps hinting that Dickey was already determined to hang up his spikes. Still, if there is some possibility of Dickey carrying on, the Reds would likely be wise to explore a deal with him as a means of addressing the team’s dearth of established rotation pieces.

AL Notes: Steinbrenner, Aylward, Quatraro, Cora

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Over at the Player’s Tribune, Edinson Volquez offers a heartfelt tribute to his fallen friend, Yordano Ventura. Volquez paints a vivid picture of a charmingly pesky young man who departed too soon. It’s a story that’s well worth your time.

Here are some notes from the American League:

  • Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner discussed the state of the franchise with Joel Sherman of the New York Post after his organization fell just shy of reaching the World Series. Steinbrenner declined to tip his hand with regard to plans for long-time GM Brian Cashman and manager Joe Girardi. It’s tough to imagine a change taking place with regard to the former, though as Sherman notes, there’s still some uncertainty in Girardi’s case. Steinbrenner also reiterated that the organization intends to dip under the luxury tax line, while noting the club “will be active in free agency, as we always are.”
  • Mariners executive VP of baseball operations Bob Aylward is retiring after a 42-year career in the game, per a team announcement. He helped transition the Orioles to Camden Yards and the M’s to Safeco Field, the team notes. Aylward will continue to work as a special consultant to the team in addition to maintaining a board role at ROOT Sports Northwest.
  • The Rays have hired Matt Quatraro as their new third-base coach, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (all links to Twitter). He had served as the Indians’ assistant hitting coach, making him the latest Cleveland coach to head elsewhere. Topkin adds that the Rays plan to hire a first base coach, with Rocco Baldelli moving to a somewhat different role on the staff.
  • As the Red Sox prepare for their first season under new skipper Alex Cora, Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston examines what will make for a successful tenure. True authenticity is the touchstone for the youthful, first-time manager, Drellich concludes, both in setting expectations for players and in representing the team to the media.

Cardinals Add Jose Oquendo, Willie McGee To Coaching Staff

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The Cardinals have announced some notable coaching-staff changes, with two familiar names slated to don the team’s uniform once more. Jose Oquendo will return to his former job as the third base coach, while McGee will take an as-yet unidentified role on manager Mike Matheny’s staff.

There are clearly some other moving pieces here, and Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch covers them all (see here and here). The Cards bumped Mike Shildt from third-base to bench coach. (Last season’s bench coach, David Bell, left for a player development job with the Giants.) The club is still looking for new coaches to handle the organization’s pitching staff.

Oquendo had been a key figure on the MLB staff, but left his post after requiring knee surgery. He had remained with the organization, though, and evidently now feels up to the task once again. Now 54, Oquendo played with the Cardinals for a decade. Primarily a middle infielder, he appeared at literally every position on the field during his career (including catching one frame and pitching six). President of baseball operations John Mozeliak obviously saw it as a priority to get Oquendo back into the team’s staff; as Goold explains, the club’s top baseball decisionmaker went with Matheny recently to engineer Oquendo’s return.

While McGee’s specific duties aren’t yet clear, the indication is that the Cards won’t build silos with the staff. No matter his formal title, the legendarily fleet-footed former big leaguer will “work with outfielders on their defense and all players with their baserunning,” Goold writes. McGee, who spent the bulk of his 18 MLB campaigns in St. Louis, has previously functioned as a special assistant with the organization. Those interested in reading more about McGee’s hiring should read this discussion and interview from the Dispatch’s Rick Hummel.

NL Notes: Callaway, Marlins, Peralta, Hickey

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While the Mets had intended to conduct a second round, the team jumped at the chance to hire Mickey Callaway as manager after his first interview, Marc Carig of Newsday writes. He stressed a need to engage the team’s players as “human beings and individuals,” while GM Sandy Alderson cited a need to establish “rapport [and] empathy.” In other news relating to the hiring situation, Carig also notes (Twitter link) that the club interviewed Mark DeRosa before reaching its decision. The long-time big leaguer currently works for MLB Network; his candidacy had not previously been reported.

Here’s more from the National League:

  • Trimming payroll down to a reported $90MM obviously represents a big challenge for the Marlins. The challenge is made all the more difficult, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes, by the state of the team’s rotation. With some paring of veteran assets seemingly all but inevitable, it seems likely that the team will look to bring back some new arms if at all possible. Of course, the organization will surely still be looking to rely on internal options to fill out the staff. A team source had some rather harsh words for two such candidates, telling Jackson that promising youngster Dillon Peters “needs to lose weight” and charging that the struggling Adam Conley fails to accept instruction and “thinks he has all the answers.” Neither of those two southpaws produced appealing results in 2017, though the former drew a ton of groundballs in his first 31 1/3 MLB frames (and was also quite good at Double-A) while the latter had quite a lot of success in the prior two seasons.
  • The Reds’ pitching staff has easily been the worst in baseball over the past two seasons, but there are certainly some useful pieces in place. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon takes a look at one such pitcher, southpaw reliever Wandy Peralta. The 26-year-old was a pleasant surprise in his rookie campaign, working to a 3.76 ERA in 64 2/3 frames with 7.9 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9 to go with a 54.2% groundball rate. Peralta has a diverse slate of pitch offerings — a pair of big fastballs along with a slider and change — that he utilized nearly equally in 2017. Given the number of questions marks among Cincinnati hurlers, hopes are obviously high that Peralta will continue to cement his status as a solid bullpen asset.
  • The pitching coach carousel seems to be a particular area to watch in the coaching ranks this offseason, with Jim Hickey among the notable names on the market. Per MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat, via Twitter, the former Rays pitching coach held a chat with the Cubs today. He has also already engaged with the Giants and Cardinals, she notes.

Assessing The Yankees’ Options At Third Base

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Now that the Yankees have wrapped up a successful 2017 season, the attention can shift fully to their efforts in 2018. Well, mostly. This is the era of responsible stewardship in the Bronx, so at least one eye will surely also train its gaze to the horizon.

As the team ponders its options at third base, then, it won’t simply be a matter of deciding which top free agent or trade candidate is best. On the face of things, the team is losing its third bagger to free agency and must find a replacement. And, indeed, mid-season acquisition Todd Frazier is headed to the open market. For a Yankees team that’s primed  to compete, that could mean its time to add a star. But there’s more at play here, making for a particularly interesting situation.

First, GM Brian Cashman has made clear that the Yankees’ payroll will not top $197MM. The Yanks are finally determined to get under the luxury tax line and seem quite committed to doing so. Given its slate of existing commitments, and assuming the team pays the full amount projected for all of its arbitration-eligible players, it will have just under $145MM committed and the bulk of the roster accounted for. After accounting for pre-arb salaries and the standard medical and other employment allocations, the organization could have something in the realm of $35MM to play with — perhaps a bit more, if some of Jacoby Ellsbury’s salary can be moved — though the front office may also need to keep some powder dry for mid-season moves. While that’s still a healthy amount of wiggle room, since the Yanks will return quite a few key pieces, it creates some real constraints.

Second, it’s worth bearing in mind that next year’s free agent class offers some extremely exciting possibilities. Among the many superstars hitting the open market, barring extensions, will be Manny Machado and Josh Donaldson — two of the game’s very best third baggers. Two others, Nolan Arenado and Anthony Rendon, will reach free agency in the ensuing winter. It’s difficult to structure near-term decisions around such hypothetical opportunities, of course, but the possibility of landing a star performer in the relatively near future could weigh in favor of some restraint on this year’s market.

Third, the Yankees may well actually already have their next stud already lined up. Gleyber Torres seemed on the verge of a call-up this past summer before going down to season-ending surgery. He’s expected to be prepared for a full and complete spring. But he’ll enter camp just a few months removed from his 21st birthday. Though the much-hyped prospect carried a .863 OPS at both the Double-A and Triple-A levels in 2017, those 235 plate appearances represent the full sum of his upper-minors experience. He’s not even the only quality prospect that could be in position; Miguel Andujar was also excellent in the upper minors last year and even enjoyed a brief but exciting MLB debut.

Fourth, the Yanks may also already have a perfectly useful immediate option on hand. Chase Headley was dispossessed of the job at third when the team added Frazier. But he ended up turning in his best full season at the plate since re-signing with New York. The switch hitter did not grade out positively with the glove at third, but perhaps there’s still reason to believe he can play palatable defense entering his age-34 season. Notably, as has typically been the case throughout his career, Headley was particularly effective against right-handed pitching, posting a sturdy .279/.374/.405 slash line. That makes him a fairly easy player to platoon, perhaps increasing the universe of possibilities as Cashman weighs his options.

So, just what are Cashman’s options?

As always, it’s possible to imagine the team simply going out and signing the best available player in free agency. This year’s market is led by Mike Moustakas, the 29-year-old slugger. His profile is similar to that of Frazier: good power, generally solid glovework (though his metrics slipped in 2017), and on-base struggles. Frazier himself is another possibility, of course, and ought to be available on a shorter term and perhaps at a lower annual salary than will be required to land Moustakas. Those two likely represent the universe of plausible starters, however, unless Zack Cozart is willing to change positions (and teams like the Yankees show interest in trying him at third).

On the trade market, it’s really not yet clear what might be possible. Machado and Donaldson would be major prizes, but the Orioles and Blue Jays have given hints that they won’t be selling either player. (And they’d be especially hesitant to allow them to go to the Yankees, surely.) Eugenio Suarez is a controllable piece coming off of a nice year, an perhaps he could be had for the right price, but it’ll be steep. Adrian Beltre would make for a nice target, but the Rangers aren’t likely to deal him. The Cardinals may have a bit of an infield logjam, potentially freeing Jedd Gyorko or Matt Carpenter, but it’s not yet clear how they’ll proceed. Maikel Franco could conceivably be dangled by the Phillies, though perhaps taking a shot on a talented but inconsistent young player isn’t the right approach at this stage.

Acquiring a new regular would mean not only paying a hefty acquisition price, but also figuring out what to do with Headley. He could be traded, but that would likely mean paying down some of his $13MM salary. Committing to a player such as Moustakas may not be all that desirable given New York’s excellent young options. Plus, his on-base woes come with real risk. Even Frazier could prove a questionable investment and inflexible asset, though at least he’d pair more naturally with Headley and first baseman Greg Bird and wouldn’t require such a lengthy commitment. While the trade side is worth considering, it’s also entirely up in the air at this point. Regardless, if the Yankees are going to make a big move at third — potentially blocking Torres — then perhaps it ought to be saved for next winter.

Under the circumstances, then, the Yanks might be better-served by looking instead at a platoon candidate with broader function. Yunel Escobar could provide a veteran accompaniment to Headley, though perhaps he’ll prefer to join a team that’s willing to promise him more playing time. The versatile Eduardo Nunez might be an interesting option for New York, as he’d also offer some insurance elsewhere around the diamond while upgrading over Ronald Torreyes as the primary utilityman. Asdrubal Cabrera might also make sense if his option is declined (or even if he’s dangled in trade) by the cross-town Mets.

On the trade market, possible options to join Headley at third while also seeing action elsewhere could include Josh Harrison — who’d have the highest acquisition cost and would perhaps take primary duty at the job — as well as Jed Lowrie, Logan Forsythe, David Freese, and old friend Yangervis Solarte (the player dealt to acquire Headley). Nicholas Castellanos and Martin Prado are among other possible trade targets, but the former doesn’t seem to have the glove for third and the latter is coming off of a poor and injury-riddled campaign, though as with Solarte he’s a player the Yankees know well.

That largely covers the array of outside options. Of course, it’s conceivable too that the Yanks will essentially just return the job to Headley while awaiting the mid-season arrival of its youngsters (Torres, in particular) and utilize the existing financial resources to address other areas of need. How do you see things playing out? (Link for app users.)

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