k::snyder's flickr

Now that pitcher Cliff Lee has snubbed an absurdly rich seven-year offer to come pitch in NYC for Frilladelphia, and outfielder Carl Crawford similarly rejected the team for the Red Sox, the Yankees are reconsidering their options for free agents to fill in the gaps in their lineup. Most prominently, the Yankees only have three starters locked-in to their rotation, and one of them is coming off a disastrous year (which may have been caused in part by a very nasty divorce, it seems). So what does Goliath do when he doesn't look so much like Goliath anymore?

On Tuesday, Yankees GM Brian Cashman said "Plan B is patience." So what might that patience look like to a team who have built their house in the last decade out of huge free agent signings? The News thinks they may try to beg Andy Pettite to come back, or trade for volatile Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano, though some are nervous the Yankees may make a desperate trade for someone like Zach Greinke or Josh Johnson. We're reminded a little of another NY team with deep pockets who lost out in the off-season free agent battle: the Knicks didn't get their big catch last summer (LeBron James), but instead surrounded their one superstar with a lot of complimentary, developing pieces. Maybe it's time the Yankees started trusting in their own farm system again instead of selling the farm for a Javier Vasquez.