Over the last five days, the Yankees have traded away two middle relievers and 10 prospects to overhaul their major-league roster, adding Anthony Rizzo, Joey Gallo, and pitchers Clay Holmes, Joely Rodriguez, and Andrew Heaney to the team.
The deals all came ahead of what is now a singular MLB trade deadline, which was Friday at 4 p.m. – a day earlier than usual on July 30, due to the 31st being a Saturday – and came in waves, with Holmes added Monday, Luis Cessa and Justin Wilson dealt late Tuesday night, and then Gallo and Rodriguez (Thursday afternoon), Rizzo (Thursday night), and Heaney (Friday afternoon) added in the final 24 hours or so before the deadline.
And now, this is the Yankees’ roster that will navigate the final 61 games, a span that started Friday night with the Yankees 8.5 games back in the AL East and 3.5 back in the chase for a Wild Card spot.
“I think there’s a lot of the unknown from everyone as to what’s going to unfold, but we feel like we’ve added some really impactful pieces that can help us get to where we want to go,” manager Aaron Boone said in his pregame media availability, held just after the deadline passed. “It’s been fun as a manager, and as a fan of the game, to watch the frenzy of the last couple days – but now that the deadline has passed and we know what we have moving forward, we’re super excited going into the final two months.”
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The Yankees knew they had Gallo when they played Thursday’s series finale in Tampa, and then found out on the plane ride to Miami that the Rizzo deal had become official, and that gives Boone two big weapons – offensively and defensively – at spots where the team has struggled this season: first base and left field, positions that collectively had the worst and third-worst OPS marks on the team.
“Obviously really excited to have Joey and Anthony, and what they bring to the table as outstanding two-way players,” Boone said. “Two All-Star, impact players who obviously, as left-handed hitters, give us that balance. It seems like they’ve already seamlessly fit into the room, and excited for the impact they can make on our team.”
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As for the bullpen, which has been heavily taxed this season, Holmes and Rodriguez ostensibly replace Cessa in Wilson in the bridge between the starters and the back-end quartet of Chapman, Britton, Loaisiga, and Green.
That group will likely also get Nestor Cortes back, as well, as Boone expects Heaney to move into the fifth spot in the rotation for now, and then maybe move around as the Yankees eventually hope to get Luis Severino, Corey Kluber, and maybe even Clarke Schmidt back this season.
“We’re very excited to add a pitcher of Heaney’s caliber, who can provide some depth as we hopefully get those guys back at some point, and we think Holmes and Rodriguez can really help us,” Boone said. “With only one trade deadline now, you have to make sure you’re covered, and you can never have enough pitching. We feel like we have a strong, capable group, and we’re excited to move forward with it.”
And the ‘pen may eventually include Heaney, whose his top-line numbers – 7-6 with a 5.27 ERA and 5 1/3 innings per start – may not excite, but has peripherals like K-to-BB ratio (113-to-31 in 94 innings) and WHIP (1.309, but less hits than innings pitched) that Boone sees as successes.
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“This time of year, you have to make sure you have the depth. To be able to get an established starter in this league like Heaney – you look at some of his numbers, he’s having a really strong season,” Boone said. “This is a guy who can really pitch, so we’re excited to add the depth he provides, and how he can maybe play a few different roles for us.”
Excitement abounds, but while the Yankees may be a better team on paper, Boone knows that games are played on the field, so the newcomers, as well as the holdovers, have to go out and make the moves count.
“I think right now on paper we’re certainly a better looking team. Now we have to go perform and make good on that.”
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