Yankees won’t say no on Yo

STANDARD owners peak or a hint at a daring late winter move?

We think the answer is pretty clear, but we’ll let Hal Steinbrenner’s words freak out the Yoenis Cespedes-craving Met fans among you, at least for a moment.

The Yankees owner was asked by reporters at the owners meetings Wednesday in Coral Gables, Fla., whether his club was out on the freeagent slugger. He responded, according to media reports: “I’m comfortable where payroll is right now. But we’re always looking to improve the club.

“You never know with us. We’ve surprised people in the past.”

It seems unlikely that the Yanks would pursue Cespedes, considering their aversion to spending big on this free agent market. And with Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Beltran and Aaron Hicks already in the fold, they don’t need another outfielder as much as they probably need a big-time starter. They didn’t buy one of those earlier in free agency.

Plus, the Yankees, from Steinbrenner to GM Brian Cashman, have been talking for a while about looking forward to big contracts coming off their books. That didn’t happen this winter, though it will start to after the 2016 season.

The contracts of Mark Teixeira ($22.5 million salary) and Carlos Beltran ($15 million) are due to expire after the year. Aroldis Chapman, who will make between $9 million and $13 million through the arbitration process or a settlement, is also a free agent after the year.

CC Sabathia will make $25 million in ’16 and has a $25 million vesting option for ’17 that will kick in if he enjoys strong health in his left shoulder and stays off the disabled list and in the rotation. After 2017, Alex Rodriguez’s contract — finally — expires. First, he’ll make $20 million in each of the next two seasons.

The Yankees ended last season with a payroll j ust above $223 million, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. The website baseballreference.com estimates the 2016 payroll will be around $230 million.