Will Yankees Target An Ace?

The New York Yankees flamed out of the 2012 postseason because their batting lineup went cold but for the most part, nobody is really concerned about their hitting. After all, we are talking about a team that led all Major League teams with 245 home runs in the regular season – 31 more than any other team.

So if the batting lineup is fine, are the Yankees set to target some better pitching?

In many ways, the Yankees probably don’t need better pitching. They had to survive for 12 weeks in total without Andy Pettitte but still saw eight of their pitchers combine to go 71-50 with a 4.05 ERA. They pitched a total of 1001.1 innings this season, which was the second-best in the American League.

And while guys like Pettitte and 15-game winners Hiroki Kuroda and Phil Hughes were solid, it still felt like the Yankees lacked some good quality behind C.C. Sabathia. He was truly their staff ace and while the other guys were reliable, nobody was elite. Pettitte and Kuroda are free agents while Hughes is arbitration eligible.

That being said, there are a couple of options that the Yankees might target in free agency. Zack Greinke is the top arm on the market and former Cy Young winner Jake Peavy is also expected to be a free agent. While Greinke doesn’t seem to like the big markets like New York as the nerves get to him, the Yankees might also not want to risk it with Peavy, who has been very injury-prone prior to this season.

The Yanks might opt not to splurge with pitching because they should also get the services of Michael Penada back at some point next season. He was projected to be the Yankees No. 2 starter before tearing his labrum.

We’ll find out whether pitching is one of their main targets or not.