NY Times (Kepner): Looking to Add Arms, Yankees First Deal One

“Pitching, pitching, pitching, and then left field,” General Manager Brian Cashman said. “Those are the obvious areas we need to focus on.” The Yankees have an advantage on other teams, of course, because they have the highest payroll. They hope to bring it below $200 million for next season, but that still gives them enough space to have choices. Their first move was to subtract a pitcher, trading reliever Brian Bruney to the Washington Nationals on Monday for a player to be named. The Nationals pick first in the Rule 5 Draft on Thursday, and they will select a player for the Yankees. The last player the Yankees kept from the Rule 5 Draft was Josh Phelps in 2007, but other teams have uncovered stars. Players like Johan Santana (1999) and Josh Hamilton (2006) have been acquired in that draft. Bye bye Bruney. Adopting kronicfatigue‘s suggestion, I"m going to keep this thread at the top of the site and consider it a general thread for any winter meeting discussions.