2012 MLB Free Agency: 15 Latest New York Yankees Offseason Rumors

The New York Yankees have been no strangers to rumors this offseason, whether it be trades or free-agent signings.

With some holes to fill, most importantly starting pitching, the Bombers have been linked to several moves so far with nothing happening yet.

Here are some of the latest rumors that you need to know about.

Brian Cashman Won't Overpay for Pitching

Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman will stay patient this offseason when it comes to looking for help with their starting rotation.

With a lot of mediocre names at a high price, there is nothing out there that the Yanks will spend big to bring to New York.

Cashman made it clear that he won't overpay because New York just isn't that desperate.

This might be one of the few years in Yankees' history when it's okay not to make any moves in the free-agent market.

Sometimes less is more.

Trade for Matt Cain

The Yankees have certainly tried their hardest to bring in another starting pitcher this offseason, even trying to trade a ton of prospects in return for San Francisco Giants pitcher, Matt Cain.

The trade was rejected, as the Giants seemingly have no interest in dealing their second best pitcher, not even for the Bombers top prospect, Jesus Montero.

Rest assured, if Cain or Lincecum are available at any point this season, the Yankees will be on top of it.

Signing Yoenis Cespedes

There are currently three teams with a strong interest in the Cuban star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, and the Yankees are one of them.

Cespedes will have teams lining up around the block to sign him when he hits the free-agent market sometime after the Winter meetings.

If you've never heard of him, take a look at the video above and you'll know exactly why teams want him so bad.

And a bonus for anyone who can tell me where these home runs actually landed!

Signing Jorge Soler

The 19-year-old Cuban, Jorge Soler, has been looked at by several teams this offseason with the Yankees being among them.

Soler is a center fielder with good speed and the potential to hit for a lot of power. He would be a project though, and the Yankees wouldn't expect much from him for a few years.

Still, it's never too early to plan for the future and Soler could be a force for the Bronx Bombers for several years to come.

Re-Signing Luis Ayala

The success of the Yankees bullpen could be attributed to many things last season, one of them being the stellar showing of Luis Ayala.

As many as six teams could be interested in the right-hander for their respective bullpens, the Yankees being one of them.

Ayala had a 2.09 ERA in 56 games for New York and would be a welcomed return to the Bronx in order to give the Yankees depth in the bullpen.

If the price is right, Ayala would certainly fill the void left by an injured Joba Chamberlain and could find himself in a more prominent role in 2012.

Re-Signing Andruw Jones and Eric Chavez

While Eric Chavez battled injuries for the majority of the season, Andruw Jones gave the Yankees great production off the bench.

Jones hit 13 home runs and 33 RBI in a reserve role last season and should be a welcomed return to the Yankees bench.

Chavez, on the other hand, should not. The Yanks would be better off taking their chances on another player because the former Oakland A's third baseman just can't seem to stay healthy in any role.

Still, the Yankees have reportedly expressed interest in bringing both players back in 2012.

Trade for Matt Garza

With the Chicago Cubs reportedly putting Matt Garza on the trading block, the Yankees could be one of the teams in pursuit of the right-hander.

Theo Epstein will be looking to clean house in the midst of rebuilding in Chicago and Garza could be one of the first casualties.

Garza posted a 10-10 record and an ERA of 3.32 last season. He has pitched in the AL East before with an ERA upwards of 3.90 as a member of the Rays.

You can expect that 3.32 ERA to balloon if he returns to the AL East and despite the fact that he'd still win a lot of games for New York, he isn't quite the impact starter the Yankees are looking for.

He would certainly be a help to the Yanks ailing rotation, but it must come relatively cheap as he isn't worth some of the Bombers top prospects.

Signing Mike Gonzalez

The Yanks are in need of another left-hander out of their bullpen to compliment Boone "Doom" Logan.

Although he's had some control problems, the Yanks have expressed interest in free agent Mike Gonzalez to give them a hand.

Left-handed hitters had a .214 average against Gonzalez last season, making him the perfect candidate to be a lefty specialist for New York.

Trade for John Danks

With the price tag unreasonably high for Atlanta Braves starter Jair Jurrjens, the Yankees might look elsewhere to bring in another starting pitcher.

According to John Heyman, the Bombers might look to make a trade for John Danks of the Chicago White Sox if the deal is right.

The 26-year-old left-hander was 8-12 with a 4.33 ERA in Chicago last season which isn't exactly an impact enough to put the Yanks over the top.

Danks will come more cheaply than Jurrjens, but an ERA that high will no doubt get higher in the AL East and this could end up being a bad move for the Yanks.

They should probably stay away from this one.

Signing Carlos Pena

It's being speculated that Carlos Pena would be a nice fit for the Yankees in 2012.

I'm not one of the people that feels this way.

Pena could be a left-handed power bat for the Yanks DH slot as well as a backup first baseman for Mark Teixeira.

He has the potential to put up some big power numbers in Yankee Stadium which is very favorable to lefty hitters.

Still, the Yanks might want to keep the DH slot open this season after it was vacated by Jorge Posada because of their many aging stars who could use the opening for a half a day off here and there.

Signing Hiroki Kuroda Now a Possibility

After the Los Angeles Dodgers brought in Chris Capuano this offseason, it appears they won't be bringing back Hiroki Kuroda for 2012.

According to reports, the right-hander is available to all teams despite location. It was well-known around baseball that Kuroda wanted to stay with the Dodgers because of it's proximity to his native Japan.

Because of his age, he wouldn't be a long-term solution, but the Yanks might see him as a Band-Aid until they can find a starter who fits more long-term plans.

Kuroda was 13-16 with a 3.07 ERA for the Dodgers last season.

Trade for Kyle Drabek

After a horrid showing in 2011, the Yanks might still be inquiring about Kyle Drabek anyway.

The young Toronto Blue Jays prospect had a 6.06 ERA in the majors last year which slightly bested his 7.44 ERA in Triple-A.

It's questionable if the Jays would be willing to give him up, but still the Bombers are reportedly interested in him, even going as far as contacting the Philadelphia Phillies organization to see what might have gone wrong.

Despite the rumors, expect this one to be highly unlikely to happen considering Drabek still has potential at only 23 and the Blue Jays probably wouldn't trade him to a team in their division.

Even so, unless they can get him for cheap, the Yankees would be foolish to trade away young players for a guy who had a bad first season in 2011.

Rejection of C.J. Wilson

"Overpay" might be the Yankees middle name, but not when it comes to C.J. Wilson.

The former Texas Rangers ace was reportedly looking for $20 million per season, an amount that the Yankees might have spent if they were desperate.

But apparently New York isn't that desperate having turned down a meeting with Wilson's agent last week.

That might have dashed all hopes for the left-hander to get top money being that the Yankees are one of the few teams who could afford that kind of contract.

It looks like Wilson will not be in pinstripes for the 2012 season and beyond.

Signing Hiroyuki Nakajima

Normally, I'd say it's doubtful that the Yankees would add another shortstop capable of being a starter because they do have Derek Jeter, but Brian Cashman failed to completely disspell rumors about a possible interest in Hiroyuki Nakajima.

Their rumored interest in him has even caused some people to believe the end for Derek Jeter might be closer than we think.

Still, I'd be shocked if the Yanks are interested because of all the trouble it would stir up with their fan base and in the Bombers clubhouse as well.

Not to mention, Eduardo Nunez is supposed to be their future shortstop and a move like this would be giving up on him already.

Signing Magglio Ordonez

Okay, I totally made this one up, but in my own opinion it does make sense for the Yankees to bring in Magglio Ordonez this offseason.

Ordonez has had injury problems the past few seasons, but in his limited at-bats in two years, he is hitting .279.

Considering his injury problems and age, it's doubtful any team will give him a long-term deal filled with a lot of money. He'll be limited to a DH role which is a slot that has opened up for the Yanks with only aging position players there to fill it.

Ordonez could be a huge bat off the bench as well as getting starts at DH to give the Yanks more depth offensively.

We all know the Yankees like to bring in aging, injury-plagued stars to fill out their reserve roles and as long as Ordonez wants to, he'd be a perfect fit in New York with a chance to win a World Series.