Some teams aren’t about spending lots of money on free agents. Trades, going out or in, are much more to their liking. The Los Angeles Dodgers are looking for impact players, the Chicago White Sox are willing to deal them away, while the New York Yankees are somewhere in between.
The White Sox are rumored to be open to business on any player they can’t control for more than 3 years, which means almost everyone. Chris Sale, Todd Frazier and David Robertson are the notable names on this list, all of them on the Dodgers radar. Sale has been one of the best pitchers in Baseball for quite some time, but the White Sox struggles and his own beefs with the front office making him prime trade material, including a contract that usually doesn’t come along too often attached to an ace pitcher. Todd Frazier has been linked with both the Dodgers and the Yankees, and although his batting average has taken another hit this season, his 40 home runs make him very easy to move. Robertson is probably a bit too expensive for a closer ($25 million over the next two seasons) for a team trying to cut costs. The Dodgers will actually see it as a discount considering Kenley Jansen is going to ask for a lot more, and get it from someone.
Where do the Yankees fit into all of this? They’ve been looking at trade options to bring in, including Sale, dating back to last season. But they’re not done moving players they feel don’t have much of a future with the team. One of them is Michael Pineda, who has two consecutive seasons of +4 ERA. Some have suggested that Pineda, who struck out an AL-best 10.6 batters per nine innings last season would benefit from being moved to the bullpen, as his better numbers came in seasons with a lot less innings. However, the Yankees would like to see if they can land a prospect or two for him, furthering bolstering their minor league setup.
The Yankees might still add a rotation arm in free agency. Derek Holland, Jason Hammel and Rich Hill are all on their shortlist, but the Yankees don’t want to spend too much, wary of the luxury tax, or give anyone they don’t feel 100% safe with something longer than a two-year deal. Hill, who played for the Yankees in the past, completely transformed his career with a strong season in Oakland and Los Angeles, but that might not be enough for the 36-year old to get a three-year deal from the Yankees.
0 comments:
Post a Comment