FEEL THE YEARN
In attempt to get over hump, Yankees in desperate need of lighter touch
The other issue hanging over the Yankees is shortstop. They believe that their best two close-to-the-majors prospects are Oswald Peraza and Anthony Volpe. Had there been a 2020 minor league season, maybe one or the other would be ready next year. But it is more likely 2023. So the Yankees have to stopgap shortstop in 2022. They could go super big with Seager, whose lefty bat would help and whose physique and offensive profile translates to third base when the time comes.
They could try for Marcus Semien, who this year showed he can play second. He is athletic with a great clubhouse rep and his signing would detract from the Blue Jays. I see Seager and Semien as more probable than Javier Baez, Carlos Correa or Trevor Story in the expensive aisle — and, though I love Seager’s lefty stroke, I would favor Semien. If the Yanks shun the big price tags, here are two trade candidates they should pursue:
1. Nicky Lopez. The Royals do not tend to want to trade homegrown products they like. But their best prospect, Bobby Witt Jr., is a shortstop and ready, and Adalberto Mondesi is still on the roster. So Kansas City has coverage. Lopez does not have the power the Yankee baseball ops likes. But this team needs some batting average in the lineup, defense on the field and athleticism on the bases — all areas in which the switch-hitting Lopez excels.
2. Jake Cronenworth. Do the Padres have to lower or reimagine their payroll after spending a record amount in their most disappointing season ever? At the past trade deadline, Padres GM A.J. Preller was willing to attach prospects to move Eric Hosmer (four years, $59 million left). I wouldn’t take on Hosmer if I ran the Yankees because Anthony Rizzo is a grade or two better overall fit if they can bring him back. But could the Yankees get reasonable access to the versatile, lefty-swinging Cronenworth if they were willing to take on the two years at $16 million owed Drew Pomeranz or the two years at $37 million owed injury-prone Yu Darvish?
Rizzo is a good fit for the Yankees, but I wouldn’t give the 32-year-old more than a two-year contract. Would any team?
The Yankees have good pitching depth as a base, especially with Luis Severino indicating he is healthy and could be in line to join Gerrit Cole, Jordan Montgomery and Jameson Taillon as the rotation cornerstone. Can you believe enough in Justin Verlander post-Tommy John surgery and enforcement of sticky stuff to gamble a strong one-year deal to reunite with Cole, replace Corey Kluber and push Nestor Cortes, Domingo German and Michael King to relief/rotation protection.
The other key item for the Yankees involves fumigation not accumulation. Gallo is the hitting Sonny Gray. He seems to want no part of this environment. The Yanks cannot expect as much back as they gave up, especially with Gallo nearing his walk year, but analytic-heavy teams would still love his skill set and believe outside of New York it would flourish. The Yankees have to have feel here, not stubbornness — did they really watch these two-plus months and think Gallo will be a much better version in New York Year 2?
For the second straight season, Gary Sanchez was no longer the starter for the biggest games. He has tried hard to be better all-around but there is too much energy-sapping drama for too little offense to do this one more year. Tyler Stephenson emerged this year for Cincinnati making leftyswinging Tucker Barnhardt more expendable. The Yanks should either trade for him or try to sign him if the Reds don’t pick up his $7.5 million option.
As with Sanchez, the Yanks squandered the chance to trade Miguel Andujar, Clint Frazier and Luke Voit when they had value. The Yanks have to examine why so many of their players have initial shows of offensive excellence followed by injury and/or downturn in performance (Gleyber Torres is in this group too). All are arbitration eligible. And the Yanks have to begin thinning the 40-man roster and payroll of non-athletic, defensively challenged righty hitters.
An era began in 2016 when the Yankees traded Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller for, notably, Torres and Frazier. They reached the ALCS the following year and the playoffs all five seasons since. Yet, the window on this era appears to be closing, if not closed without a title. The Yankees can’t keep stubbornly holding onto players and, particularly, an offensive philosophy that can become even less viable if rule changes are adopted to try to make speed, putting the ball in play and defense more valuable.
An organization with feel would realize that.