3 Former Yankees that New York will Regret Letting Walk in 2024

The 2023 offseason has been a busy time for Brian Cashman and the front office ... depending on how you view it. Although the Yankees waited a while to add to the roster, they wasted no time watching players leave for different teams.

They saw players like Luis Severino, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and Wandy Peralta leave in free agency while trading away players to make room for improvements. After missing out on the most coveted free agent in Shohei Ohtani and the most hyped free agent in Yoshinobu Yamamoto, they relied on trading for the pieces they needed to assist with winning championship 28.

Although more of the transactions were from the trading block than free agency, there were questions about some of the moves the Yankees made and even trying to understand why they didn’t re-sign certain players.

Regardless of who was added and who left, the Yankees are preparing for an important season. Did they make the right moves? Will there be players that they wish they kept? Which players would the Yankees regret moving on from?

1. Michael King

Michael King broke out with the Yankees in 2020, where he started four games (pitching nine total). He found his stride an important piece for the bullpen.

In 2022, King would find himself as the man in charge of the 8th before missing the rest of that season. In 2023, he started his season as a long reliever giving depth before becoming a starter towards the end of the season. Comments were made about Michael King being part of the rotation before he was traded to the San Diego Padres. In this past season, he pitched in 49 games containing an ERA of 2.75. In the nine games he started, he won one game and lost four. In four games that he started, he got a no-decision.

 Regardless of the record, he was showing improvement in his last few starts, going more than five innings in each and striking out a combined 19 batters.

The Yankees, on the other hand, struggled with healthy pitching. King was one that Aaron Boone relied on a lot.  Although he is now pitching in a very strong division, his consistency with his arsenal would be an asset for the Padres. He now has an opportunity to start in the Padres rotation. With the help of his pitches like sinker and sweeper, which were his go-to pitches, can help foster a top spot in the rotation.

With his experience as a starter and reliever, the Yankees will miss King's versatility.