Yankees rumors: New York still targeting RHH outfielders

Even after signing veteran free agent Juan Rivera to a minor league contract, the New York Yankees remain in the market for a right-handed-hitting outfielder, general manager Brian Cashman told Jim Bowden of ESPN.

Brian Cashman told us on SiriusXM's Front Office that the Yankees teams is not finished yet and they are still looking for a RHH outfielder

— JIM BOWDEN (@JimBowdenESPNxm) February 3, 2013

The Yankees projected starting outfield includes three left-handers; Ichiro Suzuki, Curtis Granderson and Brett Gardner. For this reason, New York has been targeting a right-handed-hitting outfielder as a complement for its bench.

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They inked Matt Diaz earlier in the offseason, and the Rivera signing took place last week. Still, Bowden indicates that the Yankees continue to seek a superior option to what they already have in-house.

As far as the remaining free agent market goes, the pickings for right-handed-hitting outfielders are slim. In fact, all of the better known free agent outfielders remaining - including Bobby Abreu, Johnny Damon, Scott Podsednik, Michael Bourn and Grady Sizemore - bat from the left side of the plate.

Carlos Lee is right-handed and remains available, but he's considered a first baseman and designated hitter as he didn't man the outfield at all last season. Chone Figgins is a switch hitter, but he doesn't appear to offer much of an upgrade over what the Yankees already have. Brandon Inge bats from the right side of the plate, but the veteran's only started 32 games in the outfield over 12 years at the major league level.