Quick thoughts after the Yankees sign Marcus Stroman (and Luke Weaver)

The Yankees added 40% of a rotation in the span of a few hours Thursday. The big move: Marcus Stroman. The two sides have agreed to a two-year contract worth $37M with an $18M option according to all the trustworthy reporters. As I understand the option terms, Stroman gets a player option if he throws 140 innings in 2025. It’s not a club option and it doesn’t automatically vest. He has the choice.

I said just about everything I had to say about Stroman the other day. He’s a significant upgrade to the rotation and his ground ball ways will fit well in Yankee Stadium and with the infield defense, particularly when Oswald Peraza plays. Stroman’s had injuries the last two years though, and there are subtle signs of decline under the hood. That’s how it goes with soon-to-be 33-year-olds with a lot of miles on their arm. You can find red flags with all of ‘em.

Stroman may not be the most fun player to root for, but I prefer two years (plus maybe a third) of him to long-term deals for Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery. I don’t love love any of them, so the short-term option is the best option. This contract is more than reasonable too. It’s $750,000 a year less than the Red Sox gave Lucas Giolito, who allowed 41 home runs in 2023. Yeah.

(Earlier in the day Jon Heyman reported the Yankees made Snell an “opening offer,” though they were still far apart. Bob Nightengale says the Yankees pivoted to Stroman when they had trouble bridging the gap with Snell because they didn’t want to wait any longer to add pitching. Nightengale also says Stroman and Brian Cashman met face-to-face at some point, and presumably hashed out their differences.)

As for Weaver, he received a one-year contract worth $2M. There’s a club option worth $2.5M, and bonuses tied to innings can push the total value to $8.25M. Last week I wondered whether the Yankees would try to re-sign Weaver to a minor league deal for depth. This isn't a minor league deal, but it’s cheap enough that it won’t stand in the way of anything else. I mean, if Weaver’s $2M salary handcuffs the Yankees, they’re screwed anyway.

The 30-year-old Weaver had a dreadful season last year, throwing 123.2 innings with a 6.40 ERA (5.61 FIP) for the Reds, Mariners, and Yankees. The Yankees claimed him off waivers when they were desperate for arms in September, and he gave them one good start and two so-so starts. My lasting memory of Weaver’s 2023 will be one of the more absurd look-alikes the YES Network has ever put on my screen:

What are we doing here lol? They look nothing alike! Props to Meredith Marakovits for calling out that nonsense (video). That is the 2023 Yankees of look-alikes.

I mentioned this last week: Weaver brought back his cutter in the middle of last season and the Yankees had him throwing a slightly slower version. They seem to believe there’s something there. Enough to gamble $2M and a 40-man roster spot on it. If Weaver opens the season in the rotation, that ain’t great. As a swingman in the bullpen (essentially what Domingo Germán was supposed to be last year)? Sure, whatever. Figure the rotation lines up like this:

1. RHP Gerrit Cole
2. LHP Carlos Rodón
3. RHP Marcus Stroman
4. LHP Nestor Cortes
5. RHP Clarke Schmidt
6. RHP Luke Weaver
7. RHP Clayton Beeter

That looks much better than it did 24 hours ago. I would be surprised if the Yankees shelled out another big contract for Montgomery or Snell. Will they continue to make a push for Dylan Cease though? They should and I hope so. For what it’s worth, Heyman says the White Sox want Spencer Jones in a Cease trade. Not an unreasonable ask, I don’t think.

The Yankees will need to open two 40-man roster spots for Stroman and Weaver once they pass their physicals. Jasson Domínguez can’t go on the 60-day injured list until Spring Training opens next month, so some combination of Jeter Downs, Oscar Gonzalez, and Bubba Thompson figures to go. Maybe Ben Rortvedt since he seems to be out of options? I bet the Yankees could trade him for something given the lack of decent catching around the league.

I really wish the Yankees had tried harder for Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but what’s done is done. Stroman on a short-term deal is preferable to a long-term deal that locks up Montgomery or Snell deep into their 30s. And, let’s be real, it would not be a huge surprise if Stroman outpitches those two from 2024-25. Weaver as a cheap swingman is fine too. Maybe Matt Blake can work his magic with that cutter.

“He’s definitely got an interesting mix,” Blake said during a YES Network interview last year (video). “He’s kinda evolved over the last few years. He’s kind of worked on the cutter lately, and the changeup’s always been really good.”