Why the Yankees Should Sign Marcus Stroman

We all know the backstory. There is bad blood between the Yankees and Marcus Stroman after they decided against trading for him at the deadline back in 2019 when he was with the Toronto Blue Jays.

And most recently, Stroman was going toe-to-toe with Yankee fans on Twitter about how their team continues to spend money each year and not win championships.

Not to mention, he has had some dust ups with the New York media during his last three seasons with the Mets. And he is rather combative at times on social media.

But that doesn’t change the fact that the Yankees are in need of a top of the rotation starter behind ace Gerrit Cole.

It also doesn’t change the fact that Stroman is arguably the best No. 2 starter in the entire league. And up until this point, his market has yet to materialize, which means he will likely have to wait for the lockout to end to sign with a team.

This is where the Yankees can swoop in, bury the hatchet with Stroman, and land their complement to Cole.

READ: Where Do the Yankees Go From Here?

At the start of the offseason, agents and executives around the league were projecting Stroman to draw $25 million AAV across five to six years. However, he is now expected to receive a contract that is slightly below what Kevin Gausman (five years, $110 million) and Robbie Ray (five years, $115 million) were paid by their respective new clubs.

Stroman led MLB with 33 starts last season and produced a 3.02 ERA across 179 innings. He is also durable and does not rely on high velocity to get hitters out, which makes him a safe long-term investment.

Only three major league pitchers got 65+ swinging strikes last season with FOUR different pitch types...

Sandy Alcántara
Frankie Montas
Marcus Stroman 👊 @STR0

Slider, sinker, splitter, cutter, 4 seam, curve, 2 seam...
Batting against Stro is like a box of chocolates. 😃 pic.twitter.com/NygRuNOBtl
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) November 28, 2021

The righty, who turns 31 in May, is one of the best ground ball pitchers in baseball, inducing a massive amount of soft contact to get outs. And although he doesn’t necessarily provide much length, pitching into the seventh inning or later in only eight out of his 33 starts and into the sixth inning or later in a mere 19 outings a season ago, the Yankees can provide run support and have a strong bullpen that can back him up.

For his career, Stroman was an All-Star in 2019, got snubbed from it in 2021 despite being amongst the Top 10 ERA leaders in the first half of last season, and also won a Gold Glove in 2017. In addition to these accolades, the right-hander has shown impressive athleticism when it comes to fielding his position off the mound and has a 3.63 ERA and 853 strikeouts since making his big-league debut in 2014.

At this point, the Yankees have three options if they want to add a significant piece to their rotation: Stroman, left-hander Carlos Rodón who comes with an extensive injury history, or the trade market.

But instead of giving up assets, they should just pay Stroman and reassure their fans that they are in it to compete for a championship next season.

While the Yankees have yet to do anything before the lockout, neither have the Boston Red Sox or Los Angeles Dodgers. These three big market teams are said to be waiting for the new collective bargaining agreement to be reached in order to see what the next luxury tax threshold will be. So, there is no reason to be panicking by the Bronx Bombers’ inactivity just yet.

Once a new CBA comes to light, we should see the Yankees make more moves once the hot stove is allowed to resume. And Stroman would be an ideal fit to don the pinstripes.

Follow Pat Ragazzo on Twitter (@ragazzoreport). Be sure to bookmark Inside The Pinstripes and check back daily for news, analysis and more.