Offseason Predictions: Starting Pitching Edition

These are not the Yankees of old. They are not going to spend 300 million dollars this winter on

Cole, Strasburg,and Rendon. Though signing these three guys would probably put the Yankees “over the edge” and bring them their first world series in 11 years, it is not smart for the future. They would end up with obsolete players in their late thirties who don’t even play anymore (Ellsbury, end of a-rod, etc). The way to build a winning team has changed since George was in charge. Bringing up young breakout stars and trading for high ceiling, young, and controllable players from other teams is the new strategy. The Yankees have had a very seamless youth movement. The Baby Bombers have taken over, during the regular season at least. These Baby Bombers will eventually hit arbitration and free agency and the Yankees, even with their big wallet, won’t be able to retain them all. Keeping a balance of veterans and young controllable players is how teams have recently won the world series. This brings us back to this offseason. I already outlined who I would target on the offense trade market. So this brings us now to the pitching side of things.

Through a lot of thought and consideration, I have just about came to a conclusion for my predictions for the Yankees this winter on the pitching side. The Yankees have needed another ace for the last couple years and this would have supposedly made the difference. The Yankees missed on Verlander, Scherzer, Corbin, and trading for Cole, and this is why the Astros and Nationals have a world series win and the Yankees don’t. I don’t believe in saying the Yankees would’ve won the world series with one other guy because there are a lot of other variables that have to be factored in. If the best team on paper always won, then games wouldn’t be played. The Astros would’ve just been handed the world series title. There too much chance and other factors to really predict baseball and that's what's great about it. So all of you guys out there who think the Yankees will sign Cole, don’t get your hopes up. If the Yankees do wind up signing Cole, I would not be disappointed though. I would give it about a 25-30% chance of happening. Who knows, maybe "Ninja Cash" will swoop in last second and strike a deal with Gerrit. Anyways, here's my big predictions. "Expert prediction" if you insist.

This offseason I think the Yankees will sign Zack Wheeler and trade for Robbie Ray.

Zack Wheeler

Zack Wheeler hasn’t exactly had a great career so far, but he looks like a breakout candidate. A lot

of analysts have compared his stuff to Cole, though the naked eye doesn't really show that. He has good velocity, spin rate and low exit velocity. Hopefully the Yankees sign a pitching coach who can help him reach his full potential. Maybe a change of scenery is what he needs. He has the talent, maybe he just needs a change of mindset, maybe a winning mindset. Something he can’t get with the Mets. The Yankees had a lot of interest in him around the trade deadline, but trades between the Mets and Yankees never really come into fruition. He has been roughed up a bunch in his career so he won't be as expensive as a Cole but talent evaluators say he has a lot of talent so he will get a good amount of money. He isn't quite the true ace that the Yankees have supposedly been trying to get but he does bring a good amount of potential to the table.

Prediction:

Wheeler signs with the Yankees for 4 years and $76 Million

Robbie Ray

The Yankees have always been a big fan of Robbie Ray and so have I. He has good velo and good

offspeed pitches. He is another pitcher who hasn’t quite reached his potential yet. The Yankees have

had a lot of interest in him last offseason and near the trade deadline this past season. I think it has

been a matter of the Dbacks thinking they are in postseason contention but they really are not. Don't

let me get into a whole debate about the 2nd wild card messing up the balance of the league and

making for less trade deadline deals because no teams think they are sellers because they think

they can sneak into the second wild card spot. Anyways, Robbie Ray has high strikeouts and plus

stuff he just lacks control sometimes and if the Yankees new pitching coach can help him reach his

potential he could be one of the top starting pitchers in the game. These two moves are going to be

really impacted by whoever the Yankees decide to make their new pitching coach because these are

two potential really good pitchers if the right person is their coach. No pressure Yankees, but you better make the right decision.

Mock Trade:

Yankees Get:

Robbie Ray

Dbacks Get:

Michael King

Albert Abreu

Clarke Schmidt

If you have predictions for who you think the Yankees will get this offseason, let me know who in the comment section below. 

The Longer This Goes On The More Attractive Curtis Granderson Looks

I am the first person to admit when I am wrong or that I misjudged something, and the longer this thing goes on the more it looks like Curtis Granderson really is the only option for the New York Yankees this season. Now, I admit that I wrote a post detailing why the New York Yankees did not need Granderson, but keep in mind before flaming me or before accusing me that I am playing both sides and flipflopping that this was written while Judge was still on his original 3-week timetable, and not the unknown timetable that we are faced with today. It seems like Granderson may be more valuable to the Yankees than I originally thought, and here’s why.

The Yankees need an outfielder, period. I don’t trust Shane Robinson on the roster and I don’t trust him in the middle of a pennant race. Could the Yankees survive three weeks as originally planned with Robinson? Absolutely, but we could be looking at another three-to-four weeks for all we know, and the need for an outfielder has become more pressing. Granderson has cleared waivers and looks a lot more feasible for the Yankees than other outfielders that have cleared revocable waivers, including but not limited to Adam Jones and Andrew McCutchen. Why? Money.

Granderson is set to make roughly $1 million for the remainder of the season while both McCutchen and Jones will make roughly $4 million or a shade under for the remainder of the 2018 season. The Yankees reportedly have about $4 million to play with for the remainder of the season while remaining under the luxury tax threshold, something that is going to happen whether the fans think they are “not committed to winning” because of it or not. With Granderson acquired the Yankees would still have enough money on the books left to go out and add to the bullpen, to the bench, to the rotation, whatever. With Jones, who has a full no-trade clause with 10-and-5 rights, and McCutchen the Yankees would not have that wiggle room.

So, let me eat my crow and take my foot out of my mouth while you, Brian Cashman, go out and acquire Granderson. He is a left-handed veteran outfielder that is familiar with the New York market, the team and the postseason. He can still hit for power and play a good defense in right field. Make the move, and make me ultimately look dumb, because if it makes the team better then I am okay with that.

BOLDLY Predicting the MLB Trade Deadline: National League West

The July 31^st trading deadline is fast approaching here for the 2018 MLB season, so let’s take the chance to post a few bold predictions for every team in the National League West before the deadline next Tuesday. Enjoy, and leave your comments and thoughts below in the comments section.

The Arizona Diamondbacks need a shortstop and a catcher, but their biggest issue will be the lack of prospects that their farm system has available in order to acquire either one of these positions of need. Another area of concern for Arizona this summer will be money, especially with the bulk of their allotted salaries going to RHP Zack Greinke. The window to win in Arizona is quickly closing as Patrick Corbin will hit the free agent market after the season leaving Arizona with no choice but to take advantage of the slow start by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018. The team will need to go all-in, but unfortunately the market for both shortstops and catchers is dry and barren. The team needs to make some additional moves in my opinion to hold off the rest of the National League West, but I just can’t see them having the pieces and the dollars to make any substantial moves.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have already made the biggest splash to date in the July 31^st trading deadline season and you would be a fool if you thought that they were done. The Dodgers stumbled coming out of the gates here in 2018 and have a lot of ground to make up, but the good news for Los Angeles is that now they are back within striking distance of not only the playoffs, but the division as well. The team needs second base help and could look at a veteran rental like Brian Dozier to team with Chase Utley and others as well as a relief pitcher or two to help get the ball to Kenley Jansen. The Dodgers are not done though, not by a long shot, so stay tuned.

The Colorado Rockies need a first baseman or an outfielder as well as more pitching, much like every single contender and potential playoff team here in 2018, so why wouldn’t the team get all that done in one major deal with the Cincinnati Reds. I truly think these two teams can matchup for a blockbuster trade that could bring in outfielder and first baseman Adam Duvall along with reliever Raisel Iglesias. If the Rockies truly want to get greedy they could also try and pry away Matt Harvey in the deal as well to plug in a hole at the back end of their rotation. The Rockies window for winning is closing as Nolan Arenado, their third baseman, inches closer towards free agency so the time to strike for this club may be now. They have already solidified the bullpen some this trade season, but this move may finally push the Rockies to the “All in” category. The team is close not only to clinching a postseason berth, but also close enough to potentially snipe the National League West away from the Dodgers and the Diamondbacks.

The San Diego Padres will trade Kirby Yates, Tyson Ross and Craig Stammen. The Padres are not going anywhere this season and will likely trade away all their valuable arms before the deadline much like the team did with Brad Hand and Adam Cimber. Kirby Yates is a true rental and is having a career-year, which to be honest was likely aided by pitching in baseball’s equivalent of Yellowstone Park, while Ross came back to San Diego this season on a Minor League deal. I could see a team like the New York Yankees taking a waiver on Ross just because of how cheap he is in terms of dollars and cents, or any other team for that matter who needs a starter including the Atlanta Braves, Washington Nationals or the Milwaukee Brewers.

The San Francisco Giants will trade Jeff Samardzija. Yes, I said it. The team went out and aggressively acquired Evan Longoria and Andrew McCutchen before the season, but to date their efforts have been for nothing as the team is once again on the outside looking in at the postseason as we stand here today. I don’t think the Giants are out of it enough to completely tear everything down, and I don’t think they are at the point yet where they will or where they need to trade Madison Bumgarner, so a simple trade that could net them a prospect or two in a weak pitcher’s market while also clearing some money off the luxury tax cap could be in order in San Francisco. Sorry, Giants fans… I know you expected more.

Disclaimer: BOLD predictions are meant to be BOLD for a reason. Keep that in mind before directing hate mail towards me or any of my writers on the blog or on Twitter. Thanks in advance.

BOLDLY Predicting the MLB Trade Deadline: National League Central

The July 31^st trading deadline is fast approaching here for the 2018 MLB season, so let’s take the chance to post a few bold predictions for every team in the National League Central before the deadline next Tuesday. Enjoy, and leave your comments and thoughts below in the comments section.

The Chicago Cubs will acquire JA Happ (went to the New York Yankees after this was written) or Steven Matz, whichever comes off the board last. The Yu Darvish experiment has failed, and Theo Epstein and company are in the market for a starting pitcher, specifically a starting pitcher that could potentially start a playoff game for the team behind Jon Lester and company. I would trust either Matz or Happ (Yankees) in a Game 3 or Game 4 situation if I were the Cubs, and I’d trust him a whole lot more than I would trust Darvish right now specifically. Chicago may also be in the market for lesser upgrades like a left-handed specialist in the bullpen or a bench piece, but a starting pitcher is likely the main target for the Cubbies as we speak.

EDIT: The team acquired Cole Hamels, does "close but no cigar" count?

The Cincinnati Reds will trade Matt Harvey, Scooter Gennett, Raisel Iglesias, David Hernandez, Jared Hughes, and Adam Duvall. While this sounds like a lot of movement for the Reds to accomplish in just five days I could totally see multiple players moved in a single deal. For instance, if the Boston Red Sox were to acquire Scooter Gennett, which I boldly predicted, then they might want to package a deal with Jared Hughes or David Hernandez as well. There will be many teams interested in Raisel Iglesias and he could fetch a premium in the trade market, but no team probably needs him more than the Colorado Rockies. After the money the team spent on their bullpen in the offseason this may come as a surprise, but if you check the stat lines for those highly paid relievers and if you then check how close Colorado is to the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division the deal begins to make a little more sense. I can see a blockbuster deal going down between the Reds and the Rockies that also includes Adam Duvall along with Iglesias as both are needs for Colorado while the Rockies have the prospects to get such a deal done.

Milwaukee Brewers need a shortstop and a starting pitcher, everyone else around the league is telling Milwaukee to “join the club.” Obviously, that is my speculation, but it seems like every team that is contending or close to contending needs a starting pitcher and a shortstop. The Brewers revamped their outfield this winter and have a young and exciting team with plenty of prospects that could be moved in any number of deals, but I can’t see Milwaukee making those deals just for the sake of making them. That doesn’t seem like their style given their history over the past 10-or-so years. If the right deal comes along, for example a potential deal for James Shields to help with the rotation or a deal for Asdrubal Cabrera with hopes that he can handle the shortstop position again, then I could see the team making it. I just can’t see a substantial deal being made by Milwaukee, although watch out as they could look to acquire Yangervis Solarte from the Toronto Blue Jays with the hopes that possibly he could handle the shortstop position for the remainder of the season. 

EDIT: I mean, or they could acquire a closer or reliever like Joakim Soria and throw a monkey wrench into my whole post. Or that. 

The Pittsburgh Pirates will not make another move. The Pirates could win 12 games in a row, or they could win 25 games in a row, but I just can’t see the team doing anything substantial. Just a few weeks ago if I had written this post it would have been littered with a laundry list of players that the team was absolutely going to trade but winning a dozen or so games in a row has the tendency to change things. The Pirates management likely knows better that the team will eventually come back down to Earth here in 2018, and with that so will their hopes of a 2018 postseason spot in the National League.

The St. Louis Cardinals will also be quiet at the trading deadline in my opinion as that team is in that scary and uncomfortable position somewhere between obvious contender and should-be seller. The Cardinals have all but said that they would not move Carlos Martinez in any deal this summer and that all but told me that the Cardinals plan is to either go all-in and sell or stand pat with the core that they have now for potentially one last run at the playoffs in the 2019 season. If the team was at least open to discussing a trade for Martinez then I could see them tearing it all down, but since they wont I truly believe they will stand pat more than they will do anything before July 31st, 2018.




Disclaimer: BOLD predictions are meant to be BOLD for a reason. Keep that in mind before directing hate mail towards me or any of my writers on the blog or on Twitter. Thanks in advance.

BOLDLY Predicting the MLB Trade Deadline: National League East

The July 31^st trading deadline is fast approaching here for the 2018 MLB season, so let’s take the chance to post a few bold predictions for every team in the National League East before the deadline next Tuesday. Enjoy, and leave your comments and thoughts below in the comments section.

The Atlanta Braves need relief pitching and will likely be in the market for any rental arm or veteran bullpen piece that could become available. I believe the Braves could also be in the market for a starter with Mike Soroka likely not due back any time soon which could lead them to come knocking on the Kansas City Royals door for Danny Duffy. The Braves and Diamondbacks (who I predicted would acquire Duffy earlier) could get into a bit of a bidding war for the veteran lefty as both team’s sprint towards a potential playoff spot. Names like Fernando Rodney could also be an option for the Atlanta bullpen as the team tries to piece together a team that can make the postseason a year or two before even they thought they could. Does this mean next offseason they will acquire their own Giancarlo Stanton (like… say… Bryce Harper just for ironic purposes) like the New York Yankees did after they defied even their own odds making the postseason a year earlier than expected? Now that’s bold, stay tuned.

The Miami Marlins will sell J.T. Realmuto, Starlin Castro, Brad Ziegler, Martin Prado, Kyle Barraclough, Adam Conley and Drew Steckenrider before the deadline. The Marlins tried to empty the cupboards before the beginning of the 2018 season but were unable to do so. Derek Jeter and company will finish the job this summer with huge trades for Realmuto, Castro and Ziegler while lesser deals will be struck for Prado, Barraclough, Conley who is emerging as a breakout candidate this season, and Steckenrider. Sell, sell, sell, sell, sell.

The New York Mets will not trade Jacob deGrom or Noah Syndergaard, but they will deal Asdrubal Cabrera, Devin Mesoraco, Zach Wheeler and Steven Matz. Wheeler will likely command a Top 10 prospect and that prospect could currently be wearing a Cleveland Indians (or one of their affiliates) uniform at the time of this writing. Meanwhile Matz could be calling Chicago and Wrigley Field his new home for the rest of the 2018 season and beyond.  Many teams are looking at starting and backup catchers including the New York Yankees, but the Mets will have to eat much of Mesoraco’s salary in order to move him. The Reds are already paying for some of his salary after the trade for Matt Harvey so potentially Mesoraco could be drawing three different (not literally) paychecks from three different teams here in 2018. Asdrubal Cabrera is a mystery as to where he will land. I wanted to say a team like the Milwaukee Brewers could potentially look at him with the hopes of moving him back to shortstop, but with his recent slide and tempter tantrums thrown on the field your guess is as good as mine as to where the veteran second baseman will land.

The Philadelphia Phillies need bullpen help, shortstop help and third baseman help. Much like the Atlanta Braves I can see the Phillies being interested in any and all of the veteran relievers and the rental relievers that are on the market this summer including Fernando Rodney. The Phillies are sprinting towards the playoffs maybe a season or two earlier than expected and will look to bridge the gap between talented starters like Aaron Nola and Jake Arrieta, to the back end of their bullpen. The team will also look at acquiring position players on the left side of the infield and could look at renting Mike Moustakas from the Kansas City Royals. The Phillies were said to be aggressive in their attempt to acquire Manny Machado from the Baltimore Orioles before the deadline so theoretically any shortstop that fits their price range could be of interest to Philadelphia.

The Washington Nationals biggest and most glaring need on the team this season has been at catcher. When the Nationals need an upgrade at a certain position the team and their GM have never shied away from making the big deal or the deal necessary to propel the team into the postseason, and 2018 will be no different. The window to win with Bryce Harper still in town is now, and with that thought process the team will do whatever they can and whatever it takes to acquire J.T. Realmuto from the Miami Marlins. The Nationals may also dip their toes into the starting pitching marker after placing Stephen Strasburg on the disabled list with a pinched nerve in his neck earlier in the week. While I cannot see the team acquiring a big name and potentially an expensive name in terms of prospects like Chris Archer, I could see the team take on a player like Matt Harvey of the Cincinnati Reds. The team will not trade Bryce Harper to the Yankees with the stipulation that Harper will play first base, dreams are just that… dreams.

Disclaimer: BOLD predictions are meant to be BOLD for a reason. Keep that in mind before directing hate mail towards me or any of my writers on the blog or on Twitter. Thanks in advance.

BOLDLY Predicting the MLB Trade Deadline: American League West

The July 31^st trading deadline is fast approaching here for the 2018 MLB season, so let’s take the chance to post a few bold predictions for every team in the American League West before the deadline next Tuesday. Enjoy, and leave your comments and thoughts below in the comments section.

The Houston Astros will acquire a left-handed reliever Adam Conley from the Miami Marlins to solidify their bullpen after losing out on Zach Britton to the New York Yankees. After acquiring backup catcher Martin Maldonado from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim I believe the Astros are set and ready to try to defend their American League pennant, unless of course a deal comes up that they just can’t pass up.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will not make a single move. Again. Well, unless you count moving Martin Maldonado to the Houston Astros as a legitimate move. I guess it counts. Let me rephrase then, the Angels won’t make any major or significant moves. Better?

The Oakland Athletics will not make another move. The team is young and exciting, but they are not close enough to being real and legitimate contenders in 2018 in my opinion. The team also doesn’t have many veterans that they can unload for prospects either unless the team decides to move Jed Lowrie or Jonathan LuCroy, but I just can’t see it given how close they are to a potential second Wild Card.

The Seattle Mariners will acquire Chris Archer from the Tampa Bay Rays to help bolster their starting staff and to potentially take some innings off of a taxed, but albeit great, bullpen out inside Safeco Field. Also, I find it interesting what the Mariners will do with their whole Robinson Cano situation. Cano is ineligible for the postseason after failing a test for performance enhancing drugs this season, so will the team merely plug him back in at second base when he returns? Will they let him split time with Nelson Cruz as the primary designated hitter? Will they move him to first base to learn a new position on the fly in the midst of a pennant race? And will this lead the team to enter the outfielder market? So many questions, not enough answers, but one thing is for sure… even if Cano didn’t have a no-trade clause written into his contract you have to think his trade value is as low as it has ever been and will ever be. Comes with the territory I guess.

The Texas Rangers will trade Cole Hamels, Shin-Soo Choo, Keone Kela, Jake Diekman, and Alex Claudio. Cole Hamels is doing the team no favors by struggling at the worst possible time for the team, but thankfully for Texas the starting pitching market is that dire and barren right now that they could still get a decent return for him. Given the state of his hefty contract and the looming option that his contract holds for the 2019 season the Rangers may have to eat some of his salary to move him and depending on how much they eat will determine how good of a prospect or prospects that the team gets back in return. There is zero chance that Hamels is not traded in my opinion, of course barring an injury (Hamels was traded after this was written to the Chicago Cubs). The Rangers will likely look for a suitor for Choo as well, but again they may have to eat some of his remaining salary to make a trade work. Keone Kela is the team’s closer and seemingly has come out of nowhere here in 2018 which could lead to a decent haul in terms of prospects from a team like the Atlanta Braves who are in need of some bullpen help before the deadline. Diekman and Claudio are both left-handed relievers that have not had stellar results this season, but both could benefit from the constant need for left-handed relief pitching from basically every contender not named the New York Yankees.

Disclaimer: BOLD predictions are meant to be BOLD for a reason. Keep that in mind before directing hate mail towards me or any of my writers on the blog or on Twitter. Thanks in advance.

BOLDLY Predicting the MLB Trade Deadline: American League Central

The July 31^st trading deadline is fast approaching here for the 2018 MLB season, so let’s take the chance to post a few bold predictions for every team in the American League Central before the deadline next Tuesday. Enjoy, and leave your comments and thoughts below in the comments section.

 

The Chicago White Sox will trade Jose Abreu, James Shields, Joakim Soria (traded to Milwaukee after this was written), and Avisail Garcia. The day the White Sox move Abreu will be a sad day for all their fans involved as he has become a fan favorite of the fans for his tenure with the team. Chicago is in the midst of a rebuild though and there are plenty of teams looking for first base help making a trade to a contender likely. While there are many teams that are looking for help at first there are even more teams looking for help with their pitching staffs, specifically in the starting pitching variety. James Shields won’t net the White Sox a Top 10 prospect by any means, but he could be a good consolation prize for the team’s that miss out on Chris Archer, Jacob deGrom, JA Happ (Yankees) or any other pitcher that could possibly be moved. Teams are always looking for bullpen help and Soria, a proven veteran closer, will be dealt to a contender either as a closer or as a setup man (ultimately went to the Milwaukee Brewers). The Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers could be in on Soria’s services. Avisail Garcia is unlikely to be moved as many teams are set on outfield help, but the White Sox will most certainly be fielding calls and offers for him in the meantime.

The Cleveland Indians need an outfielder and a fifth starter, and it makes you wonder if two names I just mentioned would interest them, Avisail Garcia and James Shields. While both names would make sense on paper I cannot see the Indians settling with James Shields in a potential playoff rotation. Instead I could see Cleveland going after Zach Wheeler of the New York Mets to fill their void. Wheeler will likely cost the Indians a Top 10 prospect or more but would propel the team into the American League pennant conversation along with the Boston Red Sox, Houston Astros and the New York Yankees. Cleveland could also take a waiver on Garcia of the White Sox, but it seems more likely that the team would go outside the division and acquire someone like Curtis Granderson from the Toronto Blue Jays instead. That seems like a similar deal to the Jay Bruce deal that the Indians pulled off with the New York Mets circa 2017.

The Detroit Tigers could trade Nick Castellanos, Mike Fiers, Shane Greene or Leonys Martin as we inch towards the July 31^st trading deadline. Greene, the team’s closer, is fresh off the disabled list and will likely come attached to many doubts as to if he can hold up for the rest of the season, but ultimately a team like the Atlanta Braves or the Philadelphia Phillies will likely take a waiver if the price is right. I am leaning towards Castellanos remaining with the Tigers past the July 31^st trading deadline, but I would not put it out of the realm of possibilities to see him traded before the August 31^st waiver wire trade deadline. Fiers and Martin will be moved in lesser deals, but Michael Fulmer will remain with the organization at least through the end of the season after landing on the disabled list earlier this month.

The Kansas City Royals will trade Mike Moustakas, Whit Merrifield and Danny Duffy before the trade deadline as the team continues to revamp their farm system and rebuild from within. Moustakas could draw trade interest from any team that needs either third base or first base help and, in my opinion, will ultimately end up with the Colorado Rockies as a first baseman. Meanwhile, any team who needs bench and utility help will likely be in the market to acquire a player like Whit Merrifield. Teams that come to mind include the Boston Red Sox, the Chicago Cubs, and the Philadelphia Phillies to name a few teams. Duffy has not been stellar, but I truly believe the Royals will benefit from the lack of strong starting pitchers in this year’s market. Duffy will be a team’s second or third option, but a switch to the National League and a switch to a pitcher friendly ballpark like the one out in Arizona could make all the difference for both the Diamondbacks, and for Duffy himself.

The Minnesota Twins will trade Brian Dozier, Kyle Gibson, Fernando Rodney and Zach Duke. I already predicted that the New York Yankees would acquire Gibson, but there would be plenty of teams lining up for his services and his extra year of team control if he were to be made available like we are hearing. Dozier is a true rental and a veteran second baseman that most teams would like on their team for the playoff stretch run, but ultimately, I see the Los Angeles Dodgers winning in a bidding war for his services. Every contender for the most part needs bullpen help, and I can see a veteran like Fernando Rodney helping a young team in the National League, see the Atlanta Braves or the Philadelphia Phillies as good examples of potential landing spots, while Duke, a left-handed reliever, could land with a team like the Chicago Cubs.

Disclaimer: BOLD predictions are meant to be BOLD for a reason. Keep that in mind before directing hate mail towards me or any of my writers on the blog or on Twitter. Thanks in advance. 

BOLDLY Predicting the MLB Trade Deadline: American League East

The July 31^st trading deadline is fast approaching here for the 2018 MLB season, so let’s take the chance to post a few bold predictions for every team in the American League East before the deadline next Tuesday. Enjoy, and leave your comments and thoughts below in the comments section.

The Baltimore Orioles will likely be looking to trade one or all of Dylan Bundy, Kevin Gausman and Jonathan Schoop. The Orioles are officially open for business, which became evident with the trades of Manny Machado and Zach Britton to the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees respectively. I know saying that trading all three of these players isn’t exactly bold, but this is the Baltimore Orioles we are talking about. With their lack of presence on the international market and with them being sticklers in the medical department, nothing is a given with this team any longer.

The Boston Red Sox could likely use a second baseman and could be interested in Scooter Gennett. This just sounds like a move that the Boston Red Sox would make, thus sacrificing what little is left in the farm system that has been gutted by GM Dave Dombrowski. Gennett would make less than $3 million (prorated) this season and comes with one final year of arbitration before becoming a free agent before the 2020 season. The Red Sox may also look to bolster their pen a bit, but not with a big name and more likely with a minor trade like a trade for Joakim Soria of the Chicago White Sox than for a Keone Kela of the Texas Rangers, for an example.

The New York Yankees will acquire Kyle Gibson from the Minnesota Twins. We had a source contact us and tell us that the team was linked to him, which does not mean that they will necessarily acquire him despite what many took that to believe when we reported it on Twitter, and this guy has been good to us in the past. We knew about Curtis Granderson signing with the Mets before anyone else because of him, and he told us he was hearing “rumblings” about Giancarlo Stanton before he was traded, but he had already been acquired by the time I checked my direct messages on Twitter. Gibson is not the sexiest name out there, but he comes with team control and an affordable price tag both in terms of prospects and dollars. Plus, he has to be better than Luis Cessa minus his last two starts. He just has to be.

EDIT: Happ is a Yankee

The Tampa Bay Rays will trade Chris Archer, Wilson Ramos, and Sergio Romo. The team will not trade Blake Snell, sorry Yankees fans. The Rays have already begun unloading talent with trades for Matt Andriese and Nathan Eovaldi and their GM will not stop there. You have to wonder though if Romo will be traded with the intent of using him in the bullpen or at third base going forward. I kid, but with the Rays you never freaking know for sure what they are going to do anymore. Not that this is a bad thing either, I am just saying in general. Ramos will likely not be dealt until August due to his injury and will have to clear waivers to do so, but ultimately, I can see him being dealt to a contender later this season.

The Toronto Blue Jays will trade Josh Donaldson, JA Happ (written before he was sent to the Yankees), Yangervis Solarte, and Curtis Granderson. Truth be told I had this post typed out previous to its release today as I have been working on it all week and I had Seung-hwan Oh traded as well, but not to the Colorado Rockies. I had him going to the Atlanta Braves so it’s a good thing I could delete that and didn’t have to admit to being wrong again, right? Also, I realize that Donaldson is injured and will likely not be traded until sometime in August, assuming he clears waivers. There are many teams that could be interested in help on the left side of the infield and in the outfield leading to both Solarte and Granderson being dealt, Solarte likely to a National League team and Granderson likely to an American League team that could also play him at designated hitter from time-to-time.

Disclaimer: BOLD predictions are meant to be BOLD for a reason. Keep that in mind before directing hate mail towards me or any of my writers on the blog or on Twitter. Thanks in advance.

Hello… T-Minus Five Days and Counting…

Good morning Yankees family and welcome back to the blog. Five days, the countdown has begun. T-Minus five days until the July 31^st MLB trading deadline. Five days for the buyers to buy, the sellers to sell, and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to stand pat like they always do. Five days to figure out if you’re a contender or a pretender. Five days to make or break and shape the rest of your 2018 season. No pressure and don’t mind the “tick, tock” in the background.

Five days for the rest of your season, potentially. Five days for the rest of my life with you my Kari, and forever still wouldn’t be enough. I love you.

Hello… Manny Machado & Disappointment

Good morning Yankees family and not only a welcome back to the blog this morning, but welcome back to baseball as tonight marks the official end of the All-Star Break for the New York Yankees. I have to say that I don’t have the same excitement to head into the second half that I have in years past, not after the news that Manny Machado would be heading to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

I fully understand that the Yankees didn’t need Machado, and truth be told I wouldn’t want to give up five prospects in order to acquire him since he is a rental, but I have to admit that after all the news, reports, rumors and speculations I began to get my hopes up about acquiring him just a tad. Oh well, water under the bridge. The rumor mill is silent for the Yankees and that is when Brian Cashman tends to do his best work, I guess we will just have to be patient and trust the process.

Welcome back! Let’s do this!

And baby, I love you! Always have, always will.

Zack Wheeler Checks A Lot of Boxes for the Yankees

Just because the New York Yankees are unlikely to acquire either right-handed starter Jacob deGrom or Noah Syndergaard it doesn’t mean that the Yankees and the New York Mets don’t match up in a potential trade for pitching. Late in the week it was reported that the Yankees have been scouted and have some interest in another one of the Met’s right-handed starters, Zack Wheeler.

According to Andy Martino of SNY the Mets are asking for a “couple prospects” in return for Wheeler including one that is a Top-10 prospect in the Yankees system. I don’t have to list off the Yankees top 10 prospects to know that I don’t feel comfortable trading one of our Top 10 prospects for what basically equates to the Mets 3^rd, 4^th, or 5^th starter (for the record MLB.com has him listed as the Mets 3^rd starter currently and had him ranked 4^th before Jason Vargas went down with an injury).

Wheeler checks a lot of boxes for the Yankees, none bigger than his team control and affordability. Wheeler is only making $1.9 million this season and the right-hander comes with a year of team control in 2019 as well before hitting free agency before the 2020 season.

Wheeler has been pitching well as of late after seeing his ERA balloon to 5.40 through the month of April only to see it drop to 3.44 as it stands at the time of this writing. Wheeler has been durable and effective and would be cost effective for any potential team that acquires him. I wouldn’t mind Wheeler in Pinstripes come August 1, 2018, but not at the price of a top 10 prospect though.

Stay tuned.

Hello… Camp Crystal Lake

Well, it looks like we survived another Friday the 13^th. Well, at least those of us reading this that weren’t sitting out on Camp Crystal Lake last night. Anyway, another day and undoubtedly another full day of swirling rumors, trade proposals by the fans, and click baits by the writers, bloggers, and people who cover the team. Enjoy the day, and good morning.

Good morning beautiful. I love you.

Luis Severino, Justus Sheffield and History Repeating Itself

“The Yankees didn't make a deal for a starter at the trade deadline, but they'll be adding a new pitcher to their rotation next time through. Brian Cashman announced today that top prospect Luis Severino would be called up to make his next start with the big league club, likely replacing the injured Michael Pineda. No date has been announced for Severino's big league debut yet, as Cashman says Joe Girardi and pitching coach Larry Rothschild will handle mapping out a schedule for the young right-hander.

Severino has dominated Triple-A since being promoted from Trenton earlier this season. In 61.1 innings with the RailRiders Severino has a 1.91 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 50 strikeouts. Those are certainly some dominate numbers that the Yankees could use at the big-league level right now with the state of their rotation currently up in the air and one of their best pitchers expected to miss at least a month.

Cashman showed a lot of faith in Severino by refusing to trade him for an upgrade at the trade deadline. He'll have a chance to reward that faith from the front office very soon. It's been a long time since Yankees fans had a top prospect to look forward to making their big-league debut. Severino is obviously a few cuts above Rob Refsnyder and that was very exciting before it was cut short. Hopefully we will all get a much longer look at Severino.”

That was a post written by Pinstripe Alley’s Tonya Bondurant on July 31, 2015. Take out Luis Severino’s name and put Just Sheffield’s name in its place. Is history potentially about to repeat itself here in the Bronx with a Yankees top pitching prospect? I have to believe so, yes. Why else would the Yankees be looking at potentially upgrading their bullpen and offense, but not their starting rotation? And why else, well there are a million and one reasons in my opinion why, would the team refuse to offer up Sheffield in any deal for Manny Machado plus potentially others like Zach Britton or Kevin Gausman? Because they are planning on calling him up on August 1^st after adding him to the 40-man roster, something the team will have to do after the season anyway to protect the left-hander from the Rule 5 Draft.

History is about to repeat itself in my opinion, and Justus Sheffield is coming. Stay tuned.

Hello… #MachadoWatch

Good morning everyone and welcome back to the blog. Boy, the Manny Machado potential trade to either the New York Yankees or one of seven-or-eight teams could really shake things up this month, couldn’t it? I mean, if the Yankees were to acquire Machado then I believe it would lead to an additional trade involving a pitcher of some kind, whether it be an ace like Jacob deGrom or a rental piece like Nathan Eovaldi or Cole Hamels. If a team like the Red Sox were to acquire Machado, although I don’t see this happening, then I could see a whole new set of dominos beginning to fall. This is going to get interesting, and probably a little annoying truth be told, as we all sit and wait on #MachadoWatch.

And my baby, my eyes are always on you… because love. I love you!

The New York Yankees Won’t Get Nathan Eovaldi… Or Could They?

Yankees Twitter, their respective Facebook groups, and other outlets of news and media went crazy over the weekend when it was reported that the New York Yankees had a scout in attendance when the Tampa Bay Rays, and namely right-handed starter Nathan Eovaldi, faced off with the New York Mets inside Citi Field. Without any real knowledge or reports of why the scout was there, the Yankees could have been scouting the Mets for all we know, the hypothetical starting pitching rotations including a healthy Masahiro Tanaka, the ace Luis Severino, and Nathan Eovaldi began popping up everywhere while forgetting the most important factor of them all, the Rays. Why would the Rays trade Eovaldi, or anybody, to the New York Yankees? They wouldn’t… or would they? 

Before we get too far into this let’s look at the most important bit of information surrounding a potential trade, would the Yankees benefit from acquiring Eovaldi? In a word, yes. Eovaldi, who is no stranger to pitching in New York, has been stellar overall since his return off the disabled list after a second Tommy John surgery and even took a perfect game into the seventh inning against the Mets on Sunday. Eovaldi now has eight starts under his belt since returning from the DL including two no-hitter or perfect game attempts, the other coming in his first start since the injury.  

Why would the Yankees want him? If the right-hander is pitching the way he has he would be an immediate and tremendous upgrade in their starting rotation for the remainder of the season. His contract is team friendly and it expires at the end of the 2018 season making him a rental in terms of dollars and the prospects needed to acquire him, both of which are important to New York. The Rays will likely be looking to trade him to a contender this summer, but why would they trade him to New York? Well, there could be a couple of reasons.  

First and foremost, the Rays are not going to compete here in 2018, the year that Eovaldi’s contract expires, so trading Eovaldi to the Yankees for a couple of months is much different than trading New York a player like Blake Snell who Tampa Bay would have to watch dominate them for years to come. Secondly, the Yankees and Rays are no strangers to trades, although it is usually a three-team trade that brings the two teams together. It is not out of the realm of possibilities that the Yankees could work out another three-team trade, use your imagination on the third team because I have no idea, to bring Eovaldi to the Bronx for prospects.  

It is far more likely that Eovaldi comes to the Bronx than a Chris Archer or a Blake Snell, three-team trade or not, so keep things realistic when thinking about your potential starting rotation in a seven-game playoff series in the Bronx. Severino, Tanaka, Eovaldi and Sabathia sounds a whole lot better to me than a rotation with either Sonny Gray or the inconsistent rookie Domingo German. I’m just saying.

Hello… And Welcome Back

Good morning Yankees family and welcome back to the blog. Man, it has been too long. In a word or two, work sucks. Not to get political here at all but the tariffs on trades that have been handed out to certain countries, China in particular, by President Donald Trump has really been hitting our industry hard. Some of our suppliers are adding an extra 20% or more to the price of material coming out of China which, in my particular field, has caused me an absolute ton of work. The tariffs are in place now and, despite what my managers thought, the world has not ended so maybe (hopefully) things will calm down enough to be able to get back into the swing of things here on the blog. I’ve missed you guys.

So let’s get caught back up and let’s get ready for the trade deadline that is looming.

And you… get ready to spend the rest of your life loving me. I can’t wait for forever with you. I love you.

Predicting the 2018 Trade Deadline: Matt Harvey

The New York Mets essentially dumped Matt Harvey onto the Cincinnati Reds after designating him for assignment earlier in the year. The Mets wanted rid of the headache, and presumably the contract if at all possible, while the Reds acquired him with the hopes of building his trade value back up for a meaningful trade before the July 31^st trade deadline. The Mets took on Devin Mesoraco who makes more than twice as much as Harvey, although the Reds did send cash back to offset the difference, while the Reds have been successful in establishing some value for Harvey, a value that will see the former All-Star and Mets product in the Bronx by the end of the month in my opinion.

Go ahead and laugh, make your jokes about Harvey in New York and how he won’t be the missing piece to the Yankees World Series puzzle. I’ll call your sarcastic chuckle and raise you a few stats that may open your eyes to the possibility just a bit. Since joining the Reds the former Mets right-hander has pitched to a 4-3 record with a 3.86 ERA including a 3-0 record with a 1.47 ERA in his last three starts. The command is back, the filthy pitching is back, and so is the velocity after peaking at 97.2 MPH in his last start. Harvey is fresh off a start in which he shutdown and shutout the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers for 5.2 innings, only leaving the game because of a 54-minute rain delay.

Harvey is a free agent at the end of the season and, fiscally anyway, he would fit into the Yankees plans for the 2018 season. If he could pitch like he did back in his hay day with the Mets, then he fits into the Yankees plans for the 2018 season in so many other ways. Harvey would be and likely would be much better than Sonny Gray at this point and would give the Yankees another veteran arm to help their march towards the postseason.

What would the Reds want in exchange for Harvey? What any young and rebuilding teams wants, pitching. Enter Jonathan Loaisiga who has been being showcased for the Yankees over the past couple of weeks including this week inside Yankee Stadium against the Atlanta Braves. Would the Reds be willing to do a one-for-one swap? I can only presume, but my presumption would be that they would be willing to make the swap. Loaisiga is a young and controllable starting pitcher that is MLB ready, obviously, which would check a lot of boxes for the Reds. This may anger some Yankees fans, myself included, but we must remember that this is a business and that Brian Cashman is not as attached to these young guys as we are. He will make the move if the Reds allow him to pull the trigger for Loaisiga, you can bet on it.

Hello… Happy 4th!

Good morning Yankees family and a very happy 4^th of July and Independence Day to everyone here in the states. This day would be just another day if it were not for the veterans and their families who make the ultimate sacrifice every single day and for that, I thank you.

I hope everyone has a great day. Enjoy the day but also remember why we have it.

Predicting the 2018 Trade Deadline: Danny Duffy

The name Danny Duffy is not at the top of any team’s priority list if we are being completely honest, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be more than a couple teams interested in his services this summer before the July 31^st trading deadline. In my opinion, and I know this will not be a popular opinion by any stretch of the imagination, I believe that both of the teams we will watch inside Yankee Stadium this evening will be at least interested in the Kansas City Royals left-hander, the Yankees and the Braves. Who will win tonight will be decided in just a few years, but who will win in a potential Danny Duffy sweepstakes? Well that could take until the end of July to find out.  

Before we get too far into this let’s get one thing out and in the open, Danny Duffy is not at the top of the Yankees priority list and Duffy is also not the arm that will put New York over the top when it comes to the postseason and the World Series. At least not on paper, but he could be a serviceable addition to the rotation if the Yankees were to run into a few scenarios. Do either of Domingo German or Jonathan Loaisiga have innings limits this season? German has never thrown over 123 innings (he has already pitched more than half as many innings thus far in 2018) in a season and that came back in 2014 while Loaisiga has never pitched more than 68 innings in a season, so it is conceivable that both could be on innings limits by the end of the season. Do you trust Sonny Gray pitching Game Four of a playoff series? Because I don’t either. The other scenario is an injury, it could happen to any pitcher, but it could especially happen to CC Sabathia with his balky knees and lower extremities. Duffy isn’t the ideal choice, but he should be looked at nonetheless in my opinion.  

Duffy would come cheap as he has been inconsistent here in 2018, a year before hitting his free agency before the 2019 season. Duffy’s overall stats are not pretty but if you look at his game logs he shows at least something to get excited about. Duffy has made 17 starts as of the time of this writing and has been the model of consistently inconsistent in all of them. Duffy has allowed three runs or less in nine of them including three games where he allowed zero earned runs. Where his inflated numbers come in at are in the games where he allowed five runs (three times), nine runs, six runs (twice), and seven runs against the Houston Astros.  

Duffy seems to be a lot like Sonny Gray in the way that when he is good, he is great, but when he isn’t… watch out. Could Larry Rothschild work his magic on him and “fix” him? I can’t say no, he has done it with so many others before, but for the same reasons the Yankees would want him would be the same reasons why the Atlanta Braves would need him. The Braves will be stiff competition, and stiff competition makes the price for everything go up. If the Yankees decide that they need another starter and a better option doesn’t present itself first, a better option being a better pitcher who is younger and with more team control for example, then I could see the Yankees rolling the dice on Duffy for the cost of a couple low-level prospects. If the price gets too high, then I’d be content with letting the Braves have him and going with what we currently have. The Yankees don’t need him, Justus Sheffield should be ready soon, but in my opinion the Atlanta Braves do if they want to hold off the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies.  

Hello… A Shift in Focus

Good morning everyone and welcome back to the blog. What a weekend for the Yankees, huh? To not only take two of three from Boston, but in the way the team did it was so impressive to me, and I truly think it sent a message to everyone in a Boston uniform. You guys may be good, but we may be better.

Also, a big middle finger to the MLB schedule makers who have the Atlanta Braves coming to New York here in 2018, but not vice versa. I waited three years for this as I live in Atlanta and you took that from me, thanks.

Anyway, the shift in focus. The calendar has turned to July and all eyes have been shifted to the trade deadline. No more Meet a Prospect talk, more finding that final piece that could lead the team to the World Series talk. Let’s get to it.

Oh, and hey you. I love you. My focus may shift elsewhere, but you are always at the center of my eye, my focus, my attention and my heart. I loves you.