From the latter parts of the 1990s to the new millennium and onward, October did not exist without the New York Yankees taking the field for playoff baseball. After nine long years (which felt like 90 in Pinstripe Land), a champion was crowned in the Bronx once more in 2009. But since then, after the year Alex Rodriguez finally quieted his postseason demons, and Hideki Matsui and a three-man pitching rotation led the Bombers to their 27th ring, the Yankees have failed to make the playoffs three times, including last year's campaign of reconstruction and a resurgence of youth.

Spring training is officially underway, and it's time to get ready for your fantasy draft. As part of RotoBaller's ongoing effort to help you win your leagues, we're previewing all 30 MLB teams. In these articles, we discuss each team's offseason moves, as well as their hitters, pitchers, and prospects.

Today's installment covers the 2017 New York Yankees Team Outlook, and previews their potential fantasy baseball contributions.

Editor's note: for even more draft prep, visit our awesome 2017 fantasy baseball rankings dashboard. It has lots of in-depth staff rankings and draft strategy columns. You will find tiered rankings for every position, 2017 impact rookie rankings, AL/NL only league ranks and lots more. Bookmark the page, and win your drafts.

 

Offseason Moves

Key Additions: Aroldis Chapman, Matt Holiday

Key Departures: Brian McCann, Nathan Eovaldi

It has been a quietly loud offseason for the New York Yankees. After being very much alive in both the divisional and wild card races heading into September of last season, fueled off of the emergence of Gary Sanchez and the rest of the Baby Bombers, the team lost steam and fell from their surprisingly overachieving ranks. In quite an unfamiliar situation, rebuilding and restarting, the Yankees looked to the offseason market, yet decided not to spend too much money or shop actively. However, it seems that the Yankees did just enough to improve, in certain areas.

Aroldis Chapman's re-arrival revamps an already solid bullpen, providing much stability for a starting pitching rotation already surrounded by uncertainty. This automatically increases the fantasy value of those starters with fantasy relevancy, especially with Delin Betances serving as his setup man. Chapman will be among the top-five closers selected in all drafts. Matt Holiday's arrival is certainly welcoming, as the Yanks have a ton of unanswered questions about their outfield. Expect him to split time between right field and designated hitter.

Brian McCann's exit officially announces the beginning of the Gary Sanchez era behind the plate in New York. McCann will now suit up in a Houston Astros uniform while the Yankees and the fantasy world have the highest of hopes for Sanchez. Nathan Eovaldi, not much of a fantasy threat, still leaves a question mark at the backend of the rotation.

 

Hitting Overview

Starting from the top of the lineup, it will be hard to trust Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner, again, as steals guys for your fantasy squad, specifically because neither run, nor get on a base, at a comforting rate. It will be interesting to see where manager Joe Girardi bats Gardner and how long he and the impatient Yankees universe will tolerate another down year from Ellsbury. Protecting Sanchez with the aforementioned Holiday batting cleanup will certainly increase the young catcher's RBI opportunities, but the inconsistency of the two "speedsters" at the top of the lineup could hinder that as well. This is where Didi Gregorius and Starlin Castro, two bats that proved themselves a year ago, could come in, and provide aid to a less than stifling one and two slots in a potentially dangerous Yankees lineup.

It would be wisest to keep an eye on and target Greg Bird. Now healthy after missing all of last season with a torn labrum, Bird will be vying for the first base job alongside Tyler Austin, both of whom have tasted major league experience, and excelled amidst the pressured aura that echoes in the Bronx. Austin could also find himself being utilized in the outfield, but my money is on Bird to emerge, as the lefty seemingly has the perfect swing for the hitter-friendly Yankees Stadium. If the torn labrum doesn't have any lingering effects, don't be surprised if Bird hits close to 25 dingers. Aaron Judge, a player likely to be kept off the fantasy radar to start the season simply because of the uncertainty surrounding his role with the team, could also sneak his way into the everyday lineup.

 

Pitching Overview

While the ball club solidified their bullpen, they failed to sign a starting pitcher to aid in a rotation that still has a lot to be desired. With the exception of Masahiro Tanaka (who needs no introduction/no convincing to draft in fantasy), the team truly lacks another stable option. Michael Pineda is often his own worst enemy and struggles to get that third strike, lacking a killer instinct that he hinted pitching behind Felix Hernandez in Seattle. CC Sabathia has already begun to decline, and while showing signs of life, emerging from the shell of is former self at times last season, he isn't trustworthy. It doesn't seem that Sabathia is capable of adjusting his game the way Andy Pettitte did as his career winded down.

Then we have Chad Green, Bryan Mitchell, Luis Cessa, and Adam Warren all competing for the fourth and fifth spots of the rotation. Mitchell showed the most poise last season despite seeing his first bit of professional baseball in September after his impressive 2016 spring training was cut short by a toe injury. His season debut against the Toronto Blue Jays, as the Yanks found themselves heavily in the race for a playoff berth, resulted in five scoreless innings. He later followed with a 6.1 IP, one ER showing against the Jays and a 7.0 IP scoreless performance against the Red Sox. Mitchell showcases four pitches and solid velocity. Keep an eye on his spring.

Luis Severino is also someone that should not be slept on this upcoming fantasy year. Severino has been working with Pedro Martinez on his mechanics in the offseason, as he plans to erase a nightmarish 2016 sophomore campaign. This may seem bold, but expect a positive turnaround from Severino in 2017.

 

Prospects Overview

Clint Frazier, the touted, talented outfielder, might not start the season in the Bigs, but could find himself getting the call midseason. It seems like the Yanks have big plans after scooping him up from the Cleveland Indians in the Andrew Miller deal last season. Brian Cashman, Yankees general manager, dubbed Frazier to have "legendary bat speed" and expects the 22-year-old to make an impact on the team as a consistent home run threat.

New York could have also struck gold when they sent Chapman to the Cubs last season, receiving 19-year-old prospect Gleyber Torres in return. Torres is still likely a couple years away from being ready, but could potentially be the future of New York's middle infield alongside Jorge Matteo.

 

Conclusion

There is much to look forward to this season, specifically because the Yankees have strayed away from dumping money on big names in the middle of their careers, and focused more on building a farm system, building from within. This was the formula used by Gene Michael, former Yankees general manager and the architect of the 1996 Yankees World Series Champion team. Unfortunately, the American League East continues to progress alongside the Bombers so it will certainly be difficult to reclaim the thrown this season. The Yankees will make some noise. The question is, how much and how loud?