The New York Yankees need starting pitching and pitching of
any kind this winter if the team wants to compete for a playoff spot again in
2017. As we look at a list of potential trade partners for the team I wanted to
focus on that first before I start thinking about any potential additions to
the offense or the bench because pitching wins championships and pitching is
what the Yankees lack most. The team has a ton of depth, don’t get me wrong, but
the team lacks that starting rotation that can scare teams in a best-of-five or
best-of-seven series in October. Could the Los Angeles Dodgers be of some help
to the Yankees in this department?
The Dodgers have a lot of good-to-great pitchers but their
problem is they haven’t been able to rely on many of them as much as they could
have wanted due to injury. Clayton Kershaw battled a bad back this season and
when the team was eliminated from the postseason they did so without three of
their more high-paid pitchers in Scott Kazmir, Brandon McCarthy and Hyun-jin
Ryu. Would any of the three be dangled this winter in trades and would the
Yankees be interested?
The last thing the Yankees need is another injury-prone or
risk in their starting rotation but with the free agent market as barren as
it’s ever been the team might be able to use that logic and acquire one of
these guys for less than their values because of the injury. Ryu has two years
left and $14 million on his contract with McCarthy, a former Yankee who is
working his way back from Tommy John surgery, has two years and $20 million
remaining on his deal. Kazmir has a larger deal but can opt out this season
leaving two years and $32 million on the table. Interesting.
Honestly I don’t believe the Yankees would be interested in
Ryu and I personally don’t put much stock into what McCarthy did while with the
Yankees a few seasons back but Kazmir is an interesting option if he decides to
opt out this winter. Kazmir pitched poorly with the Dodgers last season and for
much of this season while he also missed a month with a neck injury and many
inside the Dodgers organization have speculated that Kazmir may want to leave
the team. How it all works out will decide it all though. If Kazmir opts out
the Dodgers could offer him a qualifying offer which means, assuming he rejects
it and all signs seem to point to that he would, he would be linked to draft
pick compensation. I’m not comfortable with giving up a draft pick that early
in the first round for Kazmir but if he stays and doesn’t opt out I’d love to
have him and his salary for a smaller prospect package.
We’re monitoring this one closely. Stay tuned. Kazmir has
three days from the end of the World Series to opt out.
I don't want any of the three and this is the typical dumpster dive Cashman would make.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more. Kazmir was worth .2 wins this season. To put that number into perspective, Ivan Nova was worth 2 wins this season. We really shouldn't be trading away any of our new found prospect depth for replacement level players making millions of dollars. No sense in making trades just for the sake of making trades.
ReplyDeleteI just want a capable starting staff. Without making trades like this or selling the farm we aren't going to achieve that. The free agent market is barren and if we want to compete in 2017, and I personally do but the Yankees may be indifferent about it, trades will have to be made and risks will have to be taken.
ReplyDeleteAny of these three wouldn't be my first choice obviously but I was trying to think of names I thought the Yankees would be interested in, not me.
Gardner, McCann, Judge to name a few who can be dealt for an arm in a package or straight-up. You don't need to take all the chips you just received to get a decent arm back in return. I'm tired of the dumpster diver moves, especially on pitching. That's why I have a problem with the elf not getting a top flight arm in return for Chapman or Miller.
DeleteI don't think there were these top arms available, definitely not for chapman. Urias was off limits, as was giolitto. PIttsburg has a couple of young good starters, but didn't hear anything about that. Salazar?
DeleteOutside of these guys, there wasn't a good young starter for miller to even propose. the teams that do have someone worth targeting- LAA. their guy Richardson just had TJS. is a buy low possible? besides him. Tyson Ross in San Diego, (Joe ross with nationals, but again, wasn't happening), Teheran. Sonny gray, chris archer. I don't know, Oakland has made some terrible terrible moves, so maybe count of some consistency there and get sonny gray for cheaper than expected?
Daryl, you beat me to it...thanks!
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