Yankees Reportedly Not Finalists For One Of Top Free Agents Left

It sounds like the New York Yankees have been ruled out of the sweepstakes for one of the top free-agent pitchers available.

New York is still looking to add to its starting rotation and the top three free agents still available are Jordan Montgomery, Blake Snell, and Shōta Imanaga. The Yankees have been linked to each of the three hurlers in some way this offseason but it sounds like the club is out of the running for one of them.

The Athletic's Jim Bowden reported that the finalists for Imanaga are the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Angels, and San Francisco Giants, making it clear that the Yankees likely won't be landing him this offseason.

"Shota Imanaga finalists are the Red Sox, Cubs, Angels, and Giants according to sources," Bowden said.

New York has been linked more to Montgomery and Snell in recent weeks but did have a connection to Imanaga. The 30-year-old may not have the upside as some of the hurlers available, but he does have eight years of professional baseball under his belt and a career 2.96 ERA in 1,129 2/3 innings pitched.

The Yankees still need some pitching help but it sounds like Imanaga won't be an option. This always could change and the Yankees clearly have money to spend. New York offered Yoshinobu Yamamoto a deal worth $300 million so it definitely can afford anyone it wants. 

Although this is the case, it sounds like Snell or Montgomery are much more likely options at this point.