Jordan Montgomery Free Agency Update: Yankees interested in pivoting to World Series champ following Yoshinobu Yamamoto snub
Jordan Montgomery is being linked with a return to the New York Yankees, after spending the past two years with the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers, respectively. The Yankees have had an up-and-down winter as they landed Juan Soto via a seven-player trade, but missed out on other targets.
The LA Dodgers have been throwing serious money around, landing players like Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the latter being a serious target for the Yankees.
With Yamamoto settling down in Los Angeles on a $325 million contract, New York is casting their pitching net elsewhere.
According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, they "would like to bring back" Jordan Montgomery, who won the 2023 World Series with the Rangers. Heyman also mentioned that there may be interest in 2023's NL Cy Young winner, Blake Snell, but that still remains uncertain.
Jordan Montgomery rumored to be among multiple Yankees free agent targets
Yoshinobu Yamamoto's deal with the Dodgers was a disappointment for the Yankees. While the New York Mets offered the same deal as LA, the Yankees offered a higher average annual value, which was not enough to get him on board.
The consensus is that the money was right and he wanted to play alongside Shohei Ohtani at the Dodgers, which ruled everyone else out.
This leaves the Yankees in something of a lurch, as despite having a team that can compete in 2024, they need a bit of a push in terms of pitching. As such, it's no surprise that they are looking at Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell.
However, there is another name in the mix. Former Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres pitcher Josh Hader is also a free agent, and MLB Network's Jon Morosi expects the Yankees to make him an offer.
They are not alone in looking at the five-time All-Star though, as the Texas Rangersand Los Angeles Dodgers are also being linked.
The Dodgers appear to be a thorn in most teams' sides this offseason and seem intent on signing anyone that could push them to World Series glory. Recent reports suggest Hader is looking for a contract beyond Edwin Diaz's $102 million and it will be interesting to see if the Yankees will meet his demands.