I've Got Til 5! - Trade Deadline Review

By now you've all read a bunch of reactions to the moves made by the Yankees yesterday. Well... here are five more!


1. While you have relievers out there that are sexy like Scarlett Johansson, the Yankees acquired Esmil Rogers... who's sexy like the chupacabra.

He's not just a beast. He's a sexy beast.

Source: Discovery.com

An ERA of 6.97, WHIP of 1.694, and FIP of 5.40 are hardly numbers worth getting excited about. And while Rogers is doing a decent job of getting out right-handed hitters this season (.250/.283/.409), he hasn't always been as effective (career .282/.338/.447). But his strikeout numbers aren't bad, he doesn't walk a ton of hitters, and he didn't cost anything to acquire. So perhaps he could at least eat some innings for the Yankees.


2. I wasn't a fan of acquiring Drew at first, as I didn't think he'd be of any help. For starters, his batting line of .176/.255/.328 is pretty sad. And secondly, while he may be a fine defender, he's playing out of position and therefore may not be much of an upgrade (if any) over Roberts.

Thanks to Daniel and others I've learned that Drew is hitting much better as of late. So as for his bat I'm not as concerned. However, I'm afraid that his transition to 2B isn't going to go smoothly. It's a shorter throw to first, and it's made at a different angle. And don't forget that turning a double play from that side of the bag is completely different too.

But with that said, this could turn out to be a very good pickup. And when I say "very good pickup" I'm not talking about for 2014... I'm talking about for 2015. You never know how a player is going to do in the bright lights of New York, making this an excellent audition to be the heir to Derek Jeter.


3. I wanted the Yankees to get Prado a long... long... time ago, so I was really happy when the news came across my phone.

"I was at work... don't tell my boss."

Source: Techlove7.com

While his hitting, particular the power part of it, is a little lower than expected, I still think this was an excellent trade for the Bombers. Not only is he a solid bat for the second half of the lineup, but his versatility will make Girardi's job so much easier when it comes to constructing a lineup. While the bulk of Martin's playing time has been spent at 3B, 2B, and LF, he's also played a significant amount of innings at 1B. He's even see over a hundred innings at SS.

You may not see RF in there, which is where he's slotted to play for the Yankees this season, but with all that experience around the diamond I don't see that as a problem at all. Furthermore, he won't be needed in CF since we have Ellsbury and Gardner to play there, and I think the battery is covered as well.


4. The question of what the 2015 Yankees will look like is a whole lot clearer after yesterday.

My crystal ball is telling me that Mark Teixeira will be at 1B, Martin Prado will move to 2B, Chase Headley will be at 3B (I want to see the Yankees release ARod... much more on that in the offseason), and Stephen Drew will take over at SS. Of course, Brian McCann will be the catcher, Brett Gardner will return to LF, and Jacoby Ellsbury will continue running down balls in CF.

That leaves the Yankees looking for an everyday RF (I see Beltran at DH most days), a starter or two (Sabathia, Pineda, and Phelps seem like good bets to be there on Opening Day, while Tanaka is a question mark due to his health, and Nova probably won't be ready until later in the season), and an arm or two for the bullpen (depending on whether the team re-signs Robertson).

Oh yeah.

Source: 2GuysTalkingMetsBaseball.com

5. The best part about all the moves the Yankees made yesterday is that they didn't trade any good prospects. To be more specific, they didn't trade any big prospects for players that aren't a sure thing to be a key part of the team now and in the future.

If Cashman dealt away some bigger names like Luis Severino for somebody like that Tulo guy, or Cole Hamels, then that would be cool. But if the return was somebody like pre-injury Cliff Lee, who's a bit of a question mark for the future, then I'd be a little ticked off. And with the history of the Yankees I don't think any of us would have been surprised by that.

But the Yankees have essentially improved the team now and for next season, and did so without getting rid anything significant. How sweet is that?