Cashman pitch: Healthy arms are ‘keys to the kingdom’

THE LATE George Steinbrenner always underscored that a club can never have enough starting pitching, and with the Bombers set to open camp next week, general manager Brian Cashman said his biggest worry rests in the health of his wobbly rotation.

“Our starting rotation’s health is really the keys to the kingdom for us,” Cashman said Thursday evening at NYY Steakhouse in midtown, where he appeared with rival Red Sox executive Dave Dombrowski, Boston’s president of baseball operations, for a fundraising

event. “It normally is for anybody. I believe when we’re able to run out our healthy starting rotation that we have on paper, we can match up with anybody. It’s just maintaining health.”

Still, Cashman said that despite the pitching question marks, he thinks the current Yankee roster – which includes new winter acquisitions Starlin Castro, Aroldis Chapman and Aaron Hicks – is better than the club that earned a wild card spot last year and lost to Houston in a one-game playoff.

“We hope so. We always have that intent,” Cashman said of trying to improve the team. “We’d rather not make it worse. You never have that intent, but sometimes it works out that way. I believe as we enter 2016 we have a stronger roster than we finished (with) in 2015. But that’s on paper. You’ve got to play it out.

It’s going to be a very competitive American League East.”

Toronto won the AL East last year, but lost its ace, David Price, who signed a mega deal with division rival Boston.

The Red Sox also got stud closer Craig Kimbrel, while the Yankees traded for Chapman, who may be suspended by Major League Baseball to start the season in connection with an alleged domestic violence incident last fall.

One scenario that Cashman ruled out unequivocally is Alex Rodriguez picking up a glove to play first – or any position – should starting first baseman Mark Teixeira get injured.

“You got to stop asking Alex questions. He’s not playing any position anymore,” said Cashman. “He’s not playing anywhere. He’s a DH. He’s a very productive DH. For us to get maximum value of Alex Rodriguez, he’s going to only DH. If we have to put him in the field somewhere, we’re in trouble. And that’s all due respect to Alex.”

Cashman said that starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka is in his throwing program on flat ground after having a bone spur removed this offseason.

Of CC Sabathia, who entered alcohol rehab right before the playoffs began last fall, Cashman said he hopes he gets the lefty “that can give us a consistent start with highend performance.

“Without a doubt I think he’s healthy. I know he’s motivated, like he always is. We can use him, no doubt about that,” said Cashman. The Yankee GM added that he thinks the additions of Hicks and Castro give the roster “flexibility.”

“We can swing (Carlos) Beltran over to DH and I can have Hicks play Beltran’s place in right,” said Cashman. “I think Hicks and (Dustin) Ackley have a chance to move around and play a number of different spots. We have some flexibility in that roster. If Starlin Castro can swing over and play some third for us and spell Chase (Headley), that’s a huge benefit for roster flexibility. If he can’t, we’re not going to force it.”

Dombrowski, who was brought on board in Boston last August, said that in years past, he has done deals with Cashman during his GM tours in Detroit and Florida, but that likely would come to a close now that Dombrowski is on one side of baseball’s biggest rivalry.

“Probably made a lot more (deals) in the past than we will in the future,” said Dombrowski. “Can we? Yes. Will we? Probably not very often, I would gather. I’ve never been adverse to trading within the division, but still, it just normally doesn’t happen.”

“They have a good club. You end up with a situation with the back end of their bullpen, you know you’re playing a sixinning game,” added Dombrowski, referring to the Yankees’ threeheaded monster relief squad of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Chapman. “You don’t look forward to playing (the Yankees). You know they have a good team.”