Aaron Boone had an honest first reaction when he learned the Orioles traded for Corbin Burnes.
“That might be a bit of a problem,” Boone said.
The Yankees manager laughed about it on Saturday, two days after the trade was finalized to bring the former Cy Young Award winner to the AL East and join the Orioles team that won the division title and played 101 games last season. I was able to speak.
The Yankees were linked to Barnes for rotational help earlier in the offseason, but their lineup will now have to deal with the tough right-hander, possibly multiple times this season.
“Obviously a great pitcher goes to a great team,” Boone said at a Pinstripe Pride autograph session at American Dream in New Jersey. “We look forward to seeing him a lot and having the opportunity to compete against the best players.”
The last time the Yankees saw Barnes, he pitched eight shutout innings against the Brewers at Yankee Stadium in September.
But rather than the Yankees signing Barnes (in his final year before free agency) to pitch behind Gerrit Cole, the Orioles swooped in this week to add a proven ace to their young rotation.
A few weeks before the Orioles traded away Barnes, the Yankees filled a hole in their rotation by signing Marcus Stroman to a two-year, $37.5 million contract.
“He’s got good stuff,” catcher Jose Trevino said Saturday. “I talked to some of the catchers who got him, and I looked at their views, and they gave me some good information. But after watching his film, I didn’t know what he wanted to do. Looking at it, I think it’s going to be good. [addition]”
Still, the Yankees’ rotation will enter spring training with some question marks over Cole.
Stroman had a tough second half last season due to injury (after appearing in the first half of the All-Star game), while Carlos Rodon and Nestor Cortés are both coming off rough seasons derailed by injuries, with a combined 127 m/₃. He is recording an ERA of 5.92. inning.
Clark Schmidt will also be looking to improve after pitching a career-high 159 innings.
“I think when we’re healthy, it’s going to be really good,” Boone said of his rotation. “But it’s still early February, so we still have a long way to go. I’m excited about some of the depth we’ve added, but also some of the players we’re pushing forward. Some people may be surprised by that. I think you are there.
“But I’m really excited about some of the players – especially Carlos and Nestor, coming back from injury-plagued seasons and seeing how they’re doing over the winter. I’m looking forward to that. Obviously we’re going to bring in Marcus.
“I feel like we have a chance for a really good result, but we have to make it happen.”
The same goes for the Yankees’ bullpen, which must make up for the loss of reliable left-hander Wandy Peralta, who agreed to a four-year, $16.5 million contract with the Padres earlier this week.
Another free agent return option, Keiynan Middleton, agreed to a contract with the Cardinals, but Boone left the door open for further additions before pitchers and catchers report to spring training on Feb. 14.
“You never know what’s going to happen between now and spring training,” Boone said. “[Peralta] He’s obviously a very valuable player for us, especially the last two years where he’s gotten so many big outs and really dominated left-handed hitters. So we acquired Victor Gonzalez. Let’s see what we continue to add. There will be opportunities for others to step up.
“Hopefully, we’ll have players that we don’t even think about right now that will come along and be important pieces for us in the pen.”
