I can make this easy. I can give the current Yankees the attributes we associate with George Steinbrenner’s heyday and attempt to solve all their problems with their wallet and a disregard for the future.

In that scenario, they would sign David Price to add sturdy genius to the front of a rotation with so many questions. They would ink Ben Zobrist to play second base or trade with Detroit to get Ian Kinsler. They would use Jorge Mateo and whatever prospect chips were necessary to land Craig Kimbrel to add depth and insurance to a dynamic late-game relief group. And they would sign Yoenis Cespedes to play right field and not give a hoot about blocking Aaron Judge.

Do all of that and the Yankees would be viewed as a strong championship contender for 2016. They also would be pushing their payroll toward $300 million. And they are not doing that.

Hal Steinbrenner has been rather transparent in not intending to add another mega-contract until he has some big deals run out after 2016 (Carlos Beltran, Mark Teixeira) and 2017 (Brett Gardner, Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia). The Yankees’ top 10 salaries from 2015 all return next year at a luxury tax price of roughly $190.3 million. The seven players they are likely to go to arbitration with would cost $22.7 million, based on projections done by MLB Trade Rumors.

At $213 million, the Yankees already are well over the $189 million luxury tax threshold before completing the roster and paying the roughly $12 million that each team is charged for benefits. That leaves their tax at 50 percent, which means paying Price $30 million a year (at least what he will get) would be $45 million annually for the Yankees.

Thus, Price is out and so is Cespedes – unless Steinbrenner has a sea change in philosophy. So what do the Yankees do about their main positional and rotation issues?

Diversity/depth on offense

The Yankees carry 12 pitchers, which means having 13 position players. One is strictly a DH (A-Rod), which further reduces flexibility.

Also, despite all the problems with Stephen Drew and Brendan Ryan, they were the Yankees backup shortstops. Didi Gregorius was a revelation this year, but he is not going to play 162 games. So the Yankees would be well served if their second baseman or another versatile player could handle shortstop.

The Yankees need more players who hit lefties well, so they are not at the mercy of A-Rod and Teixeira staying healthy – a condition that destroyed them against southpaws late this season with Teixeira injured and A-Rod out of gas. Chris Young, who hit lefties well, is a free agent, so the Yankees need a fourth outfielder to play against southpaws.

Lastly, the Yankees need greater flexibility and depth because the likelihood Beltran, A-Rod and Teixeira combine for 1,600 plate appearances again is nearly nil. The Yankees need a real backup third baseman to get Chase Headley off the field more and better outfield options to preserve Gardner and Ellsbury through the season.

Ideal scenarios are hard to pull off, but this is what I think the Yankees should try: Sign Zobrist to play second, and trade for the Marlins’ Martin Prado and the Dodgers’ Enrique Hernandez to join Dustin Ackley on the bench.

The switch-hitting Zobrist has terrific on-base skills and beats up lefties, and could play third base and right field. Hernandez had the best OPS (1.215) vs. southpaws this year (minimum 50 plate appearances) and can play any position on the field except first base and catcher. Prado is a career-long lefty masher who can play the same spots as Zobrist. The lefty-swinging Ackley can play second, left or right.

In this formation, the Yankees do not have just a righty-hitting outfielder such as Young, Ryan Raburn or Marlon Byrd. Instead, with roster spots/flexibility precious, they have multiple guys who can do that and play elsewhere when the inevitable injuries strike. Against lefties, for example, they could have John Ryan Murphy catch (Brian McCann also needs more days off), Teixeira at first, Prado at second, Hernandez at short, Headley at third, Zobrist in left, either Ellsbury or Gardner in center, Beltran in right and A-Rod at DH. They are no longer patsies for southpaws.

This would mean beginning the year with Rob Refsnyder (a Steinbrenner favorite) in the minors. No problem. He played the outfield in college and should be used there and second base to be summoned when an injury hits. It also means beginning the year with Greg Bird in the minors. That is tough, but for a team lacking maneuverability, they cannot have a backup DH/first baseman as long as the Yankees seem dead set against using him at third or the outfield. Again, organizational depth is a good thing. Slade Heathcott and Mason Williams are Ellsbury/Gardner insurance.

If the Yankees just want a second baseman with shortstop experience: switch-hitter Asdrubal Cabrera is a free agent. Washington could move Danny Espinosa, a switch-hitter who is a terrific defender. Heck, the Cubs would move Starlin Castro (owed $38 million the next four years). His performance improved late when the Cubs moved him from short to second.

Rotation stability

The Yankees could bring back Nathan Eovaldi, Ivan Nova, Michael Pineda, CC Sabathia, Luis Severino, Masahiro Tanaka and Adam Warren and feel there is quality and depth, particularly if the belief is Eovaldi and Pineda have yet to reach their ceilings.

But there is so much uncertainty, particularly physically. This is why Price’s combo of ace and workhorse – kind of what the Yankees bought in 2009 with Sabathia – would be so ideal as a stabilizer.

But the strong sense is they will not go to the top of the financial free-agent market for Price, Zack Greinke, Johnny Cueto or Jordan Zimmermann.

Last offseason, the Yankees were told by Oakland that Josh Donaldson was not available. Toronto stayed relentless and ultimately convinced the A’s to deal the terrific third baseman. At present, the A’s will say Sonny Gray is not available.

However, the young righty is so talented, this is the one place the Yankees should think of investing big prospects and exhausting the possibility. Mateo is likely to be a consensus top-20 prospect next year, and the Yankees believe he can be moved from shortstop and be a Jose Altuve-like impact second baseman by 2017. Judge also will be in the top 20, and Gary Sanchez likely in the top 50.

The Yankees at least have to consider putting two together to front a package for Gray. In that scenario, you have Gray and Severino as anchors, and if health and full production ever come from Eovaldi, Pineda and Tanaka, the rotation is awesome.

If not that, the ideal guy in free agency is Hisashi Iwakuma, but the strong industry belief is he re-signs with the Mariners. Jeff Samardzija, despite a down year, remains intriguing because of his durability, athleticism, competitiveness, lack of long-term wear on his arm, plus industry belief he did not mesh well with respected White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper and was hurt by Chicago’s iffy defense. Baltimore’s Wei-Yin Chen is a proven No. 3 starter in the AL East.

However, each is expected to get a qualifying offer, meaning the Yankees would lose their first-round draft pick to sign one. That might also be true for talented, oft-injured Brett Anderson.

Cleveland’s Carlos Carrasco and San Diego’s Tyson Ross were available at the trade deadline and could be again. Did Rich Hill, 36 in March, do enough in a terrific four-start late-season cameo with Boston to entice the Yankees to take a flyer?

Colorado’s Jorge de la Rosa combines fortitude (he has succeeded in Coors Field) with two things the Yankees like: high strikeout and groundball rates. Since the White Sox have an abundance of lefty starters and needs in so many places, could they use Jose Quintana as a trade chip? Could the retooling Reds use Raisel Iglesias to address multiple needs? Is Oakland’s versatile Jesse Chavez a buy-low candidate? Would Seattle use health-challenged James Paxton – and his Andy Pettitte delivery – to try to upgrade their offense?