For whatever reason, it feels like the New York Yankees can’t catch a break, no matter the decision they make. Brian Cashman might be facing that reality when it comes to how he handled the pitching staff this offseason.

Was it a bad decision to overflow the rotation with talent? Absolutely not. In fact, many were supportive of the idea, especially after injuries affected the unit down the stretch and more depth was needed. Plus, everybody knows how important elite rotations are come playoff time.

But what if we told you that amassing that depth ended up not paying dividends? What if we told you, somehow, just a couple weeks into spring training, it’s already obvious that the front office should’ve swung a trade from a position of strength in order to balance the offense?

First, we had the Marcus Stroman rumors and resulting drama putting a damper on pitchers and catchers reporting to Tampa. Then there was Clarke Schmidt’s back injury, which has held him out of official action thus far. It’s believed he will appear in a game this week, but we will see.

The final blow came Monday, when it was revealed Luis Gil would be shut down for six weeks after an MRI revealed a strained lat (the same injury that sidelined Schmidt from May 26 – Sept. 7 of last year). All of a sudden, after Stroman’s unimpressive start to spring training, it feels like the Yankees are bleeding out quickly when it comes to boasting that hopeful elite rotation.

Many fans will immediately point to the report that suggested the Yankees refused to include Luis Gil in a trade for Kyle Tucker, but we won’t even go that far. It’s low-hanging fruit, and we don’t even know how true it was since the Astros didn’t exactly seem keen on trading an MVP candidate to the Yankees.

But, at the very least, how did Cashman not get something in return for Stroman or Schmidt? Whether it was payroll relief for Stroman or offensive value for Schmidt, why were all of these risky assets held onto when there were other areas to address?

Gil and Schmidt represented risks from an injury standpoint. Both were hurt last year and have been oft-injured for years now, but the Yankees could’ve sold high on either. Stroman, from a distance, appeared to be a team chemistry-related risk, but that’s thankfully not the case. It’s just all a giant media distraction in a year the Yankees need less of that.

The Yankees signed Max Fried to add more top-end rotation depth. Yes, they traded Nestor Cortes, but that’s because of Gil’s emergence and the belief in top prospect Will Warren. And even with Cortes’ departure, there was still a surplus.

In just a matter of weeks, what looked like a “good problem” has now turned into a “regular starting rotation” with the potential sixth starter possibly being forced to take on the No. 5 spot sooner rather than later. The Yankees would obviously be worse off in either situation, but at least if they traded somebody it would’ve given them more of an edge with their suddenly depleted lineup after the loss of Giancarlo Stanton.

Like we said: can’t win. And it’s not even anything we can rightfully blame. Even the smart or correct decisions are falling by the wayside.