Yanks' Cashman defends offseason moves: 'Not the same roster' as 2025
New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman pushed back against criticism that he hasn't done enough to shake up the roster this winter, insisting the team will look different in 2026.
"First, we have good players. It's a collection of really talented players. It's not the same roster (as 2025), I would differ there," Cashman said Wednesday, according to Yankees Videos. "We have some players at some point returning from the IL (next season) that are important players - (ace) Gerrit Cole being, obviously, one of them."
Cashman's comments come just days after New York finalized a five-year, $162.5-million contract to bring back Cody Bellinger.
The Yankees won 94 games in 2025 despite Cole's absence, reaching the playoffs for the seventh time in eight years under manager Aaron Boone. However, they finished second in the AL East after losing the tiebreaker to the Toronto Blue Jays, who then eliminated New York in the ALDS.
Cashman's response to the early playoff exit has centered around beefing up the starting rotation. New York's biggest acquisition this winter was right-hander Ryan Weathers, acquired from Miami for four prospects earlier in January. The Yankees also selected Cade Winquest from St. Louis in the Rule 5 Draft and traded for reliever Angel Chivilli on Thursday.
The rest of the club's projected 2026 Opening Day roster remains largely unchanged from last year. New York handed out only two big-league free-agent contracts this offseason - re-signing both Bellinger and utility player Amed Rosario - while center fielder Trent Grisham returned after accepting the qualifying offer in November.
The Yankees may also not be done re-signing old friends, with YES Network's Jack Curry reporting Tuesday that the team is still discussing a reunion with first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, per SNY. If Goldschmidt did return, the right-handed hitter would platoon with Ben Rice and help balance a lineup that Cashman acknowledged in December was too left-handed.
While defending his offseason moves Wednesday, Cashman pointed out that the roster will likely look quite different by October. He noted that the club acquired "a lot of weapons" ahead of the 2025 trade deadline and highlighted the anticipated returns of Cole, Carlos Rodón, and Anthony Volpe from injury as major boosts.
"We've had some additions from the second half (of 2025) that got their feet wet with the Yankees, some with success, some with failures or success," Cashman said. "But they'll now be in a position to join us with their feet on the ground and getting their sea legs under them - with a manager, too, learning how to utilize these guys, where they slot, and everything else."
He added: "So I disagree (that) it's the same team running it back. It's gonna be some differences. And the competition's gonna be different, too. In some cases, some (other) teams got better. In other cases, some teams you could maybe argue some teams got a little worse. Our division's the best in baseball. But long story short, one series (loss) ... is not gonna define what we think our capabilities are."