LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The Yankees checked in on Manny Machado for many reasons but mainly because, well, they are the Yankees.
It is in their DNA to inquire on everything, especially big players, especially situations where teams might be feeling a level of desperation, and the Yankees sense they may be able to buy a dime for a nickel.
Still, checking in and acquiring are quite different in this matter. Yankees officials were extremely doubtful that there was a path to obtain Machado, who was 55-45 to be traded by the Orioles, a person updated on the process told The Post.
Baltimore GM Dan Duquette said he was leaving the Winter Meetings on Thursday to process all the potential deals and decide whether moving his best player was feasible. He said, “I don’t see that as a viable option” when asked if he would give an interested team a 72-hour window to sign Machado long term.
Yet, more than ever before, the Orioles are open to the concept of trading Machado, namely because he is a free agent next offseason whom they are unlikely to retain, plus this might be their last, best opportunity to use him to upgrade an underwhelming farm system.
The Cardinals and White Sox were the most aggressive pursuers, according to the source. There had been some speculation that the White Sox would obtain him and spin him to the Yankees because the Orioles would rather not deal directly with an AL East rival. But one person with Yankees ties said there was close to zero chance of that.
The Yankees have about $20 million more to spend this offseason, perhaps $25 million with the vow to get under the $197 million luxury tax. Machado, in his final arbitration year, should make between $17 million and $20 million. So for the Yankees to afford Machado and address their by far main priority, starting pitching, they would have to move other contracts.
Jacoby Ellsbury has a no-trade clause and has indicated he will not waive that, particularly for another team that spring trains in Florida. The Yanks love the leadership and skills Brett Gardner brings. They don’t want to disassemble a bullpen strength by dealing David Robertson and either Dellin Betances or Adam Warren to address what already might be the majors’ best lineup without Machado.
Mainly, they do not want to surrender big prospects for what could be a one-year rental, particularly because they feel their best prospect, Gleyber Torres, and one of their best, Miguel Andujar, are close to helping now, and both can play third base for the major league minimum. The Yanks expect to be a very good team without Machado and can always just buy him if they want a year from now and pay a lot less in tax moving forward if they get under the threshold this year.
That is why their most probable direction the rest of this offseason involves fixating on finding one starter on the trade market such as Pittsburgh’s Gerrit Cole or Detroit’s Michael Fulmer or Kansas City’s Danny Duffy or Arizona’s Patrick Corbin plus re-sign CC Sabathia. There are probably scenarios in which the frozen free-agent market can lead to reduced prices in January on a free agent such as Alex Cobb or Lance Lynn and the Yankees jump in aggressively.
The Yanks respect Sabathia so much that they probably have given him a window into their thinking — that they would like to get the other starter first so they know where they stand in terms of the threshold before making a firm offer to the veteran lefty. Will Sabathia wait around for that? The Yankees sense he would prefer to continue to play near his New Jersey home and that he loves playing for the team, but recognizes there are no sure things.
But the Yankees also are not in an area of desperation. They could line up with the roster they had leaving the Winter Meetings and expect to be a strong contender with plenty of prospects and money to address in-season needs.
Still, the likely direction is a traded-for starter, a re-sign of Sabathia and perhaps a trade for a second or third baseman who does not make much, but probably not Machado, whom they checked in on because they are the Yankees.