With the trade deadline in Major League Baseball just four days away there’s no shortage of rumors out their. As we’re waiting for the first major trade to happen there has been so much talk on which player might headline that deal that it’s tough to figure out who it might be. There is however one thing that all of these deals seem to have in common no matter who the player is or what position he plays and I’m not sure how everyone seems to come to this conclusion, but apparently the New York Yankees will be acquiring everyone.
If the Yankees actually went out and dealt for 1/4th of the players they’ve been rumored to imagine what their team would look like. They’d have a bench full of All-Stars that could start on any other team in baseball and their pitching staff would feature all starting pitchers and Aroldis Chapman.
While I wouldn’t be surprised at all if the Yankees went out and traded for some type of pitching be it a starter or a bullpen piece I’m not sure why they’re name seems to come up when positions players are involved.
Even with all of the injuries the Yankees have dealt with this season they’ve still hit the baseball well. Brett Gardner and Gary Sanchez both landed on the Injured List this week; so maybe there’s a catcher out their the Yankees might have some interest in, but other than that is there a position player that makes sense for them to add?
Pitching seems to be another story. On Thursday the Yankees pitching gave up 19 runs and 23 hits to the Boston Red Sox. Then last night the Red Sox hit double digits again as they scored 10 runs while picking up 14 hits.
There isn’t a Yankees starting pitcher with an ERA under 4.00, but the question seems to be if the Yankees go out and acquire a starting pitcher which one of the five current starters they have should or will lose their spot in the rotation.
Masahiro Tanaka has made the most starts for the Yankees this season with 21. He is 7-6 with an ERA of 4.79. The talk that I’ve heard lately was that Tanaka doesn’t have “swing and miss stuff” which might not play well coming out of the bullpen. Tanaka was the victim of that Thursday night Red Sox offensive barrage. Tanaka lasted just 3 1/3rd innings giving up 12 hits and being charged with 12 earned runs. Could Tanaka be headed to the bullpen?
J.A. Happ is 8-5 with a 5.23 ERA in 20 starts this season. Happ is 1-2 in his last 5 starts and is coming off a rough outing on Tuesday when he lasted just 3 1/3 innings and gave up 6 run on 6 hits against the Minnesota Twins. The Yankees did find a way to win that game, but Happ was nowhere around for a decision. Happ has always been looked at as a guy who pitches well in pennant races, but could he be headed to the Yankees bullpen?
James Paxton was acquired in the off season and I’m not sure the Yankees have gotten what they expected out of him. Paxton is 5-6 with a 4.72 ERA in 18 starts this season. Paxton was the Yankees starter last night and he gave up 7 runs on 9 hits over 4 innings against the Red Sox. Paxton’s strikeout numbers are good, but this is the second start in a row where he’s failed to more than 4 innings. Could Paxton be headed to the bullpen?
Domingo German is the youngest (26) of the Yankees starters and he’s been the best of the starters this season. German is 12-2 with an ERA of 4.03 in 17 games; 16 of which have been starts. Staying o trend German is coming off his worst start of the season. He lasted 3 2/3rd innings on Monday against the Minnesota Twins. German gave up 8 runs on 9 hits, but oddly the Yankees did end up winning this game in extra innings. German may have the easiest time of any Yankees starter to transition to the bullpen. Would German be the guy who heads to the bullpen if another starter is acquired?
C.C. Sabathia is in his 19th and final season in baseball. He’s made 16 starts this season and is 5-5 with a 4.50 ERA. Sabathia has pitched more than just 6 innings in 6 of his starts this season and his last start was his shortest o the season as he lasted just 4 innings. Sabathia appears to be on his way to Cooperstown when his career is over and you wonder if the Yankees would take him out of the rotation in his final season, but it is possible. Could Sabathia be the starter headed to the bullpen?
Even with the Yankees going 2-4 in their last 6 games and the pitching being just terrible they still have an 8 1/2 game lead in the AL East. Sabathia gets the start today against the Red Sox while German makes the start tomorrow in the series finale. Can these two turn the Yankees starting woes around?
The Tampa Bay Rays have been in playoff contention all season. They started off leading the AL East for quite some time and now they’re holding onto one of the two American League wild card spots, but after an injury to last season Cy Young award winner Blake Snell; can they hold onto a playoff spot?
The Rays are currently in the second and final American League wild card spot, but they are only 1/2 a game ahead of the Boston Red Sox and the Oakland A’s. Can they hold off those two teams with Snell on the shelf for a month?
Snell is scheduled to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow to have some loose bodies removed. Snell is expected to be able to return in September, but who knows where the Rays will be in the standings by the time Snell is ready to return.
Coming off his Cy Young award winning season Snell has struggled. In 20 starts this season he is 6-7 with an ERA of 4.28.
I’m sure a lot of this will depend on where the Rays are in the standings when Snell is ready to return, but might it be better for Snell to just shut him down for the season? Snell is 26 years old and appears to have a long career ahead of him as a top of the rotation starter, but is it worth bringing him back this season?
If you’re the Rays; what do you do with Snell when he returns from surgery?
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