LAS VEGAS — Perhaps thinking the Yankees were down on Gary Sanchez following a terrible year at and behind the plate, teams have called Brian Cashman to see if the general manager would trade the catcher who underwent left shoulder surgery after this past season.
Cashman said no, and Tuesday repeated there are no plans other than to have Sanchez behind the plate when the 2019 season starts.
Sanchez is just one of several Yankees who Cashman has fielded questions about.
“I have teams ask me about [Miguel] Andujar, Sanchez, [Gleyber] Torres, [Luke] Voit, [Aaron] Hicks. I have had [Jacoby] Ellsbury’s name pop up,’’ Cashman said late Tuesday afternoon at the Delano Hotel.
“I have had [Dellin] Betances, [Chad] Green, [Jonathan] Holder. Sonny Gray, [James] Paxton since we acquired him. [Brett] Gardner where I had to tell someone he was 10 and 5. [Clint] Frazier’s name has come up. No one has asked me about Aaron Judge and nobody has asked me about [Giancarlo] Stanton.’’
Since Ellsbury is 35, missed all of 2018 due to a lower-back problem that led to hip surgery and is owed $47 million for two more years, that a team would inquire if he were available was surprising. However, there were strings attached.
“They call it money laundering. That’s how I define it as, somebody trying to money launder to see if we can match up with this versus that,’’ Cashman said.
Aaron Boone said he believes Sanchez can erase 2018 and develop into a better catcher and hitter.
“I think this year is going to be a huge year of growth for him,” the manager said. “And going through some of the challenges and adversity that he went through I think is going to make him a better player. He’s spent a lot of time in Tampa this winter. He’s already in very good shape. And I feel like he’s going to come back and have a really great season for us on both sides of the ball.”
According to Cashman, Sanchez has completed a big step of his rehab following left shoulder surgery.
“He is done with rehab in Tampa and will continue it back home in the Dominican [Republic],’’ Cashman said. “He will come to camp ready to go but we will protect him.’’
The Blue Jays released shortstop Troy Tulowitzki on Tuesday despite owing him $38 million over the next two years. Tulowitzki played in 66 games in 2017 and missed all of last year when he had ankle and foot problems that required surgery.
In 12 big-league seasons the 34-year-old has a .290 average.
Asked if Tulowitzki was a fit for the Yankees who are looking for a shortstop to fill the void left by Didi Gregorius’ injury, Cashman said, “I have no idea. He was released today and I haven’t looked into it.’’
Asked if it was possible to leave the winter meetings having addressed his needs, Cashman didn’t say yes or no.
“I don’t know. I got a lot of lines out and we are still fishing. We are going to try to catch a very particular type of fish in very particular categories,’’ Cashman said of finding a starter, bullpen help and a middle infielder.
“We will bring the boat back to dock and send her out tomorrow and drop our lines again. Constantly out there trying to run into some opportunities. We are very engaged with a lot of teams and agents but where it is going to lead us I couldn’t tell you.’’
In a recent visit to Tampa, Boone said he saw Greg Bird working out.
“I do think there were still some physical things that he was kind of dealing with, grinding through, that probably had some effect on performance,’’ Boone said of the first baseman who was limited to 82 games due to right ankle surgery that delayed the start of his season until late May.
Bird hit a disappointing .199 with 11 homers and 38 RBIs and he will battle Voit for the starting first-base job in spring training.
“One thing I’ve said about Greg, even though it was a very tough year for him and obviously him losing a lot of playing time towards the end of the year, certainly in the organization’s mind and in my mind, I understand what he’s still capable of being,’’ Boone said.
“And opportunity will knock for him at some point. It’s inevitable. It will be incumbent on him to take advantage of the opportunities when they’re made available to him. We still feel given the opportunity when he’s in a good place that he has a chance to still be an impact player for us.’’
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