Dealing with the deadline, Part II: The Yankees add for a postseason push

With the All-Star Game, Home Run Derby, and all the fanfare that comes with them in the rearview mirror, it’s time for baseball fans and executives alike to set their sights on the next big event on the season calendar: the trade deadline. For many, this is the real midsummer classic: the annual tradition of teams frantically swapping players in a last-ditch attempt to either improve their roster or strip it bare before the playoffs. But as part of the suspense-building before trades go down, there’s a healthy amount of speculation that must take place.

This is the second installment in my 2023 trade deadline series, so if you missed my attempt to plug holes in the Cleveland Guardians’ roster, you can read it here. In this article, I’ll try to help the Yankees nab a Wild Card spot in this year’s postseason.

The Yankees swing a deal with the Padres… but not for Juan Soto

Yankees receive: LHP Blake Snell

Padres receive: RHP Will Warren, RHP Yoendrys Gómez, RHP Albert Abreu

The likelihood of this trade hinges heavily on how the Padres fare over the next few weeks, but if they continue to slide, there’s no reason for them not to deal the resurgent Blake Snell, who will be a free agent at the end of the season.

For all that they were lauded as before the season, the Yankees’ rotation has not been particularly legendary. Gerrit Cole is the one exception, but Carlos Rodón, Luis Severino, and Nestor Cortes have all missed significant time due to injury, and Clarke Schmidt and Domingo Germán’s starts have been a mixed bag.

It makes perfect sense to bring in a guy who could be a third playoff starter behind Cole and Rodón, shifting Schmidt and Germán back to the depth roles they were supposed to hold. Snell has flourished in recent months due to both some greater trust in his secondary stuff, as well as the presence of former Yankee Gary Sánchez calling his games from behind the plate. The Yankees have an expert game caller of their own in Jose Trevino, who should be able to keep Snell’s pitch selection on the right track.

In return, the Padres get some pitching prospects who are not too far from the major leagues. Warren is the prize of the pack, having earned a mid-season promotion to AAA after striking out the world and not allowing a homer over six starts in AA. Gómez too is having a great season in AA, limiting homers while still getting a good amount of swing and miss on his pitches. His 5.8 BB/9 is a bit high, but it seems to be an anomaly based on his career numbers. The Yankees will also throw in reliever Albert Abreu to help out the Padres’ lack of right-handed bullpen depth.

An old foe gives the Yanks some outfield depth

Yankees receive: OF Chas McCormick, RHP Rafael Montero, $13,000,000 in cash

Astros receive: RHP Ron Marinaccio, RHP Lou Trivino, UTL Isiah Kiner-Falefa, C Agustin Ramírez

It was reported a few weeks ago that the Yankees and Astros had discussed a deal for McCormick, who has become underutilized by manager Dusty Baker in recent months. The Astros can ship him to the Bronx in a quasi-salary dump that gives both sides pieces that better fit their needs.

In McCormick, the Yankees will get the capable outfielder that they’ve lacked since Brett Gardner’s departure after the 2021 season. Despite an impressive 134 wRC+ this season, he’s not elite at any one thing offensively; his plate discipline is fine but not great, his power potential is okay but not close to elite, and although he swings at 8% more meatballs than the average big-leaguer, he doesn’t have incredible contact skills overall.

Still, he’s capable of doing everything somewhat well at the plate, including hitting the ball in the air and pulling many of his batted balls. He has also proven he can play all three outfield positions at an above-average level. McCormick is a great addition to the Yankees roster for 2023 and beyond.

The Yankees will also take on Rafael Montero and half of his salary. Montero re-re-invented his career in Houston in 2022, earning him a three-year, $34.5 million deal with them last offseason. It’s not a stretch to say that was an overpay despite his success, but in year one the mid-market Astros are already paying the price of that risky deal. Montero has posted a 6.57 ERA over his first 38.1 innings, with both his strikeout rate and ground ball rate dipping way down.

Part of that is bad luck. Part of that is bad pitch selection. But Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake has had plenty of success fixing pitchers like Montero in the past, often getting them to throw a sinker (Montero has a pretty good one) more often, and to throw their secondary stuff in the right situations. At worst, he’s a low-leverage middle reliever. At best, Montero could be a solid stopper with men on base.

All things considered, the Astros get plenty of decent pieces in return. They’ve only gotten 11 innings of left-handed relief this season, and while Marinaccio isn’t a lefty, he possesses an otherwordly changeup that makes him as effective against lefties as many left-handed pitchers. If his fastball command develops, he could become a reliable setup man down the road.

They’ll also take on former division rival Lou Trivino, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery but is expected back in 2024. He could take on part of the role Montero was supposed to have; generating ground balls when there are ducks on the pond. His arbitration salary is getting relatively high, but he’ll be cheaper through 2025 than even half of what Montero will be paid.

The final two pieces of this puzzle are utility man Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who will get squeezed off the Yankees’ roster with McCormick’s arrival, and young catching prospect Agustin Ramírez. Kiner-Falefa is much better suited for the role the Astros were using McCormick in; despite not being a natural outfielder he does have decent range, especially in center field. He can also fill in around the infield when needed.

Since earning his promotion a few weeks ago, Ramírez has torn up High A pitching, and he’s shown incredible plate discipline throughout his time in the lower minors. It remains to be seen what he’ll become at the major league level, but if he sticks at catcher he certainly has a shot at skyrocketing up Houston’s thin catcher depth chart.

The Yankees grab an impact bat from the Cubs

Yankees receive: OF Cody Bellinger

Cubs receive: OF Elijah Dunham

Another true rental like Snell, Bellinger will be a free agent at the end of the season, but he’s exactly the type of bat the Yankees have been lacking. He’s left-handed, he plays the outfield, and he makes a lot of contact. Yes, you heard that right, Cody Bellinger makes a lot of contact.

Bellinger struggled in his last two seasons in LA, but has reinvented himself in Chicago, posting his lowest strikeout rate since 2020, and making much more contact inside the strike zone. Bellinger also has the ability to make solid contact outside the zone, and thanks to his long swing, much of that contact is pulled in the air. He’d be a welcome addition to the middle of the Yankee lineup, and a potential extension candidate if the Yankees choose to move on from the oft-injured Harrison Bader.

For their troubles, the Cubs will get AAA outfielder Elijah Dunham from the Yankees. He’s a little old in prospect standards, but at age 25 he still shows enough promise to be a major-league capable bench bat. He hit well at AA to earn an early-season promotion to AAA, but despite a great 12.9% walk rate, he hasn’t fully figured out AAA pitching.

Dunham’s discipline seems to be there, and getting on base at a .330 clip has allowed him to showcase his base-stealing prowess with 12 in 69 AAA games so far. He can play a great corner outfield, and has seen more time in center in AAA this season. For half a season of Cody Bellinger, the Cubs are getting great value here.