For the first time in more than 20 years, the New York Yankees have missed the postseason two consecutive seasons.

With the now-retired Derek Jeter no longer on the roster and CC Sabathia not performing up to standards, the Yankees need to rebuild for the future.

Rookie pitcher Masahiro Tanaka played great last season, but an arm injury and lack of pitching depth leaves the Yankees with more questions than answers. Fortunately, the Yankees have a lot of options this offseason in the free agent market.

The first option is Max Scherzer.

Scherzer is an elite pitcher who has played his last five seasons with the Detroit Tigers. In 2013 he won the American League CY Young Award with a 21-3 record on the mound and had a 2.90 earned runs against average. Scherzer has made the last two All Star games, and he has led the American League in wins the last two season as well. At 30 years old, Scherzer still has plenty of great years ahead of him.

Okay, so how realistic is this? Scherzer is the biggest free agent name out there, and the hot stove is burning. Multiple teams, like the St. Louis Cardinals, have shown a lot of interest in the right-handed ace. Scherzer was born and raised in Missouri and attended college at the University of Missouri. He was even drafted by the Cardinals back in 2003 but never played for them.

If the Yankees want Scherzer, they're going to have outbid numerous teams and pay top dollar for his services.

Another option for the Bronx Bombers is James Shields.

Shields pitched in the American League East for seven years with the Tampa Bay Rays, so he's used to facing the Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays. Shields has won double-digit games in every season dating back to 2007, and his only losing record came during his rookie year, 2006.

Shields isn't the elite pitcher that Scherzer is, but he will most likely come at a cheaper price. Even the almighty Yankees can only spend so much money, especially with such a high amount being spent on Alex Rodriguez and Sabathia with so little production in return. Shields had a great two-year run with the Kansas City Royals winning 27 games and even helped them reach the World Series last season against the San Francisco Giants.

Shields will turn 33 years old on Dec. 20.

If the Yankees miss out on the "Big 3" this offseason, they can still take a look at Ervin Santana. Santana is a young pitcher who has played for the Atlanta Braves and Royals over the last two years. The 31-year-old Dominican pitcher once threw a no-hitter, and he won't cost nearly as much as Scherzer, Lester or Shields will. Santana is capable of starting between 20-25 games a season.

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