The Yankees want to reduce their payroll

Passion MLB
Crédit: FanSided

The New York Yankees have their work cut out for them this winter. They’ll need to pick up arms, continue to clean up the defense and add bats to replace Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger.

The latter could return, of course.

But to do so, Joel Sherman reports that GM Brian Cashman will have a certain restriction: the club’s owner (Hal Steinbrenner) wants the club’s payroll to be lower in 2026 than it was in 2025.

From $304m, the aim is to drop below $300m.

It’s not huge, we agree. But even so, it will force the club to think carefully about its off-season strategy, since not everything will be allowed.

Moreover, since the Yankees want to prioritize the return of Cody Bellinger, this will potentially take up a good portion of the remaining roster. The Yankees have $263 million invested for 2026, right now.

So is Kyle Tucker becoming more unlikely than ever? You’d think so.

In reality, the clubs that can afford Kyle Tucker won’t necessarily do so. The Dodgers, for example, are by no means guaranteed to sign the outfielder.

With the Yankees, Dodgers and Blue Jays being the three most talked-about teams for Tucker… you’d think the Canadiens club would have a real shot at the deal.

I refuse to take the Phillies and Giants off the table, though.

Because the Blue Jays also want to target a major pitcher, there’s no guarantee that Tucker will come to Toronto. But we do know that the Blue Jays haven’t talked about a smaller payroll than 2025.

In reality, once again, many names will be circulating in Toronto. Dylan Cease (often linked to the Astros) will be one of them.

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