Yankees News: Brian Cashman Confirms Interest in Gerrit Cole, Stephen Strasburg

New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman confirmed the obvious Monday, telling reporters the team plans to reach out to starting pitchers Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg in free agency.

Cashman added the Yankees will "talk about some surprise guys" as well this offseason:

Although Cashman's comments aren't earth-shattering, they represent a slight change from how the team approached the two biggest names on last year's free-agent market.

The New York Times' James Wagner reported in February the Yankees met with Manny Machado but never tabled a formal offer, and reports indicated early on Bryce Harper wasn't on their radar.

Although Machado or Harper would have made New York's offense better, Gio Urshela worked out well at third base and the outfield was pretty set already heading into the 2019 season.

Cole or Strasburg, on the other hand, would address one of the team's biggest issues.

The quality of the starting rotation fell off after James Paxton and Masahiro Tanaka. According to FanGraphs, Yankees starters combined to finish 18th in FIP (4.74) and 17th in WAR (10.6).

New York is coming off back-to-back 100-win seasons but lost in the American League Division Series in 2018 and American League Championship Series this past year. It was impossible not to contrast the Houston Astros' star-studded trio of Cole, Zack Greinke and Justin Verlander with the Yankees' less-formidable playoff rotation of Paxton, Tanaka and Luis Severino.

There's no question manager Aaron Boone has one of MLB's best lineups at his disposal when everybody is healthy. Until the team adds a truly elite ace, though, New York may continue to fall short of a championship.

The Yankees' solution is seemingly pretty obvious—signing Cole or Strasburg—but Cashman's tease about potential surprise moves could hint how the front office is actually approaching the winter.