According to multiple sources, the Los Angeles Dodgers have emerged as the favorites to sign Rich Hill, one of the Yankees top free agent targets this winter.
Just hours after the news that the New York Yankees had lost out on the bidding for Carlos Beltran, two of the most reliable sources in the rumors game, Peter Gammons and Nick Cafardo, are reporting that one of the other big name players they’ve been pursuing, starting pitcher Rich Hill, may also be ready to sign with another club.
A few days back, Jim Bowden of ESPN was hearing that the Yankees were “in full pursuit” of Hill and cited the Dodgers, Rangers, and Astros the other primary suitors for the top starter on the market. He also mentioned the Red Sox and Orioles were “in the mix to a lesser degree.”
According to Gammons and Cafardo, at least one rival club that checked in with Hill’s representatives came away with the impression that Los Angeles has a three-year deal in place in the $46-48 million range, which is just shy of the three-year $50 million that MLB Trade Rumors predicted earlier in the offseason.
There is a slight ray of hope for the Yankees as Cafardo does note Hill’s preference to pitch for an east coast club. Neither the Dodgers or Hill have made anything official yet as far as we know, so there is still plenty of time for general manager Brian Cashman to sneak in with a last minute offer.
Signing the 36-year-old Hill has been a very divisive idea among fans of the Yankees, many of whom contend that the front office shouldn’t be committing a large sum of money to a player his age when they are supposed to be in the midst of a rebuild.
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I would argue that most of the team’s young talent is on the position player side of things, so there is no stud starting pitching prospect Hill would be blocking in the short-term. Even after signing him, one of the five rotation spots would be decided by a spring competition among a group of kids. If another big arm emerges, the team can always move Michael Pineda to the bullpen.
It seems like the Yankees offense was good enough down the stretch with the Baby Bombers leading the way, that a few additions to the pitching staff could put them in a position to win in 2017 without mortgaging the future. Hill seems like one of the best bets to upgrade the rotation for just money this winter, so fingers crossed Cashman hasn’t lost out on him.
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