After being swept in a doubleheader by the Mets on Friday, the Yankees look as rough as ever - but all that stands between them and the MLB trade deadline is three more with the Amazins and a Monday morning.
The Yankees got good news that DJ LeMahieu may be available by the end of the weekend, but with Giancarlo Stanton still a bit away, Gio Urshela questionable with a bone spur, and both Aaron Judge and Gleyber Torres likely to miss much if not all of September, the lineup is, pardon the pun, hurting.
That’s not even assessing the pitching staff, where Tommy Kahnle is already gone for the season, Zack Britton is on the shelf, Chad Green seems to have lost his way, and James Paxton may not have much time (if any) to get ready for the playoffs.
Plenty of needs to go around in the Bronx, but with expanded playoffs and a wacky season, there may be less sellers at the market than ever – but these five teams might best fit the bill as one-stop shop partners if their shopping list is rental-focused.
LOS ANGELES ANGELS
Targets: RHP Dylan Bundy, SS Andrelton Simmons
Bundy was one of the top prospects in baseball in 2012 when he jumped from High-A to the Majors, but injuries and struggles in Baltimore dropped some of his shine. This year, though, Bundy posted a 2.58 ERA, a sub-1.000 WHIP, and 44 strikeouts in 38 1/3 innings over his first six starts. He would be under control for 2021 as a final-year arbitration-eligible, so he’d have a higher cost, but the Yankees’ 2021 rotation right now has Gerrit Cole, Jordan Montgomery, and nothing else settled, so it might be worth it.
As for Simmons, Tommy LaStella may have been the target, but he was dealt to Oakland late Friday night - but Simmons, a true shortstop, better fills the immediate need. He wuld be plug-and-play at SS, and if and when Torres returns, his and LeMahieu's flexibility gives the team a lot of infield options.
TEXAS RANGERS
Targets: OF Shin-Soo Choo, RHP Lance Lynn, RHP Mike Minor
Lynn is the gem here, as the ex-Yankee had a 1.59 ERA, 0.860 WHIP, and 50 K in 45 1/3 innings through seven starts in a resurgent season. He was also very good for the Rangers in 2019 and, if you remember, has pitched in the playoffs in the Bronx, and if the sinking Rangers are willing to deal (and the Yankees are willing to take) his $9.33 million tax hit in 2021, he could be the No. 3 starter next year, too.
Perhaps, to keep the cost down, the Yankees could take Choo, who isn’t hitting right now but had three straight consistently-productive seasons from 2017-19? With no Judge, an iffy Stanton, Brett Gardner struggling, and Miguel Andujar all but an afterthought, the Yankees are thin on quality outfield/DH depth (and no, Estevan Florial, who had never played above High-A before Friday, doesn’t count), and Choo’s lefty swing could bring the Yankees a few cheap homers.
Minor, who is struggling (6.75 ERA) after two resurgent seasons in Texas, would be a true rental as well, so perhaps the latter two as a package would be low-cost, high potential reward. Either way, acquiring a solid starter to pair with Gerrit Cole, Masahiro Tanaka, and Jordan Montgomery would also help the Yankees with the conundrum of what to do with Paxton when he is healthy.
KANSAS CITY ROYALS
Targets: RHP Trevor Rosenthal, RHP Greg Holland, LHP Danny Duffy?
Rosenthal (3.29 ERA, 21 K in first 14 games) and Holland (3.38, 13 K in 16 games) are the key targets here, as both have been bona fide MLB closers – and Rosenthal, in fact, spent some time in the Yankees organization last year at Triple-A.
One, or both, would help fill in for Britton in the late innings and then, come the playoffs, give the Yankees two more potent arms to take some of the leverage of Chad Green, who has not been good as a later-innings option this week. Both are also rentals.
Duffy would give the Yankees another starter in 2021, but with a $15.5 million tax hit for mid-level results, the juice being worth the squeeze is iffy.
DETROIT TIGERS
Targets: 2B Jonathan Schoop, OF Cameron Maybin, LHP Daniel Norris
Schoop has always been an offense-first infielder and is mostly a second baseman, but he’s hitting .300 with seven homers as of Friday, knows the AL East parks, and could also slide to short, where he’s played sparingly over the years. If Gio Urshela’s elbow remains balky, too, LeMahieu could slide to third as well. Maybin, meanwhile, was magic in pinstripes last year, and the Yankees have moved Brett Gardner aside for better options down the stretch before.
Norris is the wild card – he’s not old by age standards, but in terms of experience, he’s one of the elder statesmen of the Tigers’ staff. He has been relegated to the bullpen this year – his only “start” came as the opener in Game 2 of a doubleheader on August 2 – but he has thrown at least 50 pitches in three of his six outings with two appearances of at least three innings. If the Tigers were willing to deal him and his one more year of team control, Norris would, at worst, give the Yankees an Andrew Miller-upside lefty reliever for the next two seasons, and at best, a bridge starter for now/the playoffs and a potential rotation option in 2021.
SEATTLE MARINERS
Targets: 2B/OF Dee Gordon, RHP Yoshihisa Hirano
The Mariners are right on the cusp of “are we maybe still in it” territory, but they did already deal Taijuan Walker, so all bets are off.
Gordon may only be 8-for-54 entering play Friday, but he’s consistently been a .270 or better hitter with great speed in his career, and his ability to play second or center field makes him a versatile bench bat in the playoffs. He has a club option for 2021 that vests at the prorated portion of 600 plate appearances (roughly 222), but that’s unlikely to vest, and if the Mariners are willing to kick in the $1 million buyout, it passes the eye test if you squint.
Seattle doesn’t have a lot of rental pitching, but Hirano, who at 36 can still miss bats, is a pending free agent thanks to language in his contract. His deal comes with performance incentives that the Yankees might have to look at, but he has a decent track record, and as a third or fourth bullpen option, the Yankees can pick and choose spots for now before ramping him up for October.