Yankees GM Brian Cashman said that his team is unlikely to pursue a DH such as David Ortiz. (AP)

RANDOLPH, Vermont — The Yankees finished second in the American League in 2011 in runs scored with 5.35 per game. Only the Sox, at 5.40 runs per game, scored more.

That being the case, the offseason priority for Yankees GM Brian Cashman is clear.

“I’m interested in shoring up our starting rotation,” Cashman said at the Batting for Vermont event. “We have a great team on the offensive side. I don’t feel there is a need to make any changes there.

“Our biggest priority now is pitching,” he reiterated. “We’ll see how the rest of the winter goes, how our conversations shake out with other clubs, trade stuff, but as of right now, our focus is on pitching.”

That, in turn, suggests that the Yankees are unlikely to get involved in the bidding for DH David Ortiz. Cashman did not rule out the possibility of pursuing the longtime Red Sox slugger, who is a free agent for the first time since joining Boston in early 2003.

However, not only did he suggest that New York’s primary needs lie elsewhere, but he also stated that the Yankees have a number of players who would benefit from keeping the DH job open. In particular, he observed, with Alex Rodriguez being 36 years old and having played just 99 games in 2011 while dealing with injuries, Derek Jeter now 37, Mark Teixeira turning 32 just after next season starts, Robinson Cano having played 159 or more games for each of the last five years and promising masher Jesus Montero on the horizon, DH would appear low on the Yankees’ list of priorities.

“We have internal candidates if we want,” said Cashman. “The bad side is we have some veteran players who could use the breather at that spot. I’d rather have young, high-end, talented guys. But we have older, high-end, talented guys. Those guys could use a blow, whether it’s Alex, Jeter, Cano now, Teixeira, but we also have a young buck, too, in Montero now. We just have to wait and see how the rest of the roster looks and shakes out. That’s why there’s not an obvious need. We’ve got a lot of money spent and committed. With the amount I have left to play with, it doesn’t necessarily make sense for me to pursue things other than pitching right now.”

Red Sox GM Ben Cherington has mentioned on multiple occasions that the Sox want Ortiz back, and that negotiations with him have been fairly straightforward at an early stage of the offseason given the relative clarity of the market for the slugger. No doubt, that also reflects the nature of the interest by one the most deep-pocketed team in the American League.