The New York Yankees are reportedly discussing trades despite continuing to deal with injuries. Former MVP Giancarlo Stanton, who was just activated off the injured list, is hurt once again. Stanton, who spent just nine days on the active roster, was placed back on the injured list with a knee injury and will be out of action until at least early August.
Following today’s game, the Yankees placed OF Giancarlo Stanton on the 10-day IL with a right knee sprain and recalled OF Mike Tauchman from @swbrailriders.
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) June 26, 2019
Additionally, Cameron Maybin, who has been a pleasant surprise for the Yankees after picking him up in a trade earlier this season, suffered a calf injury. Maybin is expected to be out until early August. These injuries could have a direct impact on the Yankees as they are looking to upgrade their starting pitching.
Luis Severino
Injured Yankee pitcher Luis Severino has been shut down again as he attempts to rehab his lat injury. Severino has not appeared in a game this season, and this latest setback has now pushed his return date to late August. The Yankees still expect him to play this season. However, this could certainly force the Yankees to make a significant move for a starting pitcher in the coming weeks.
Luis Severino has not been able to throw off a mound yet. He was shut down due to soreness and had another MRI. Aaron Boone said Severino’s lat is 90 percent healed but he won’t throw until it is 100 percent.
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) June 29, 2019
Dellin Betances
Dellin Betances who is a key member of the Yankees bullpen also has not pitched this year due to a shoulder injury. The Yankees believe he will resume throwing in early July. However, he also is expected back in early August. The Yankees bullpen ranks as among the best in the league, and getting Betances back would be a huge boost.
Luis Severino has not been able to throw off a mound yet. He was shut down due to soreness and had another MRI. Aaron Boone said Severino’s lat is 90 percent healed but he won’t throw until it is 100 percent.
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) June 29, 2019
Returning Player
Pitcher Domingo German is expected to return to the rotation next week. German, who has been out with a left hip flexor strain since June 8th, will be starting on either Wednesday or Thursday. German provided a huge boost when the Yankees had several starting pitchers on the injured list.
Domingo German is good to go and will return to Yankees rotation next week
German, who has been out since June 8 with a left hip flexor strain, will start “Wednesday or Thursday.”https://t.co/mJWwWSZoEw
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) June 29, 2019
Matthew Boyd Interest
The Detroit Tigers have made ace pitcher Matthew Boyd available, and reports have surfaced that the Yankees have talked about acquiring him. Boyd has a career record of 27-41 with a 4.82 ERA. While those numbers don’t indicate Boyd is an ace pitcher, he has been playing on bad Tiger teams.
The 28-year-old pitcher had his best season in 2018, when he went 9-13 with a 4.39 ERA. Boyd has been even better this year with a 5-6 record and a 3.72 ERA. The Tigers have asked for one of the Yankees’ brightest young players in Gleyber Torres, and that is where the trade talks cooled off. Boyd is making only $2.6 million this season and has three more years of arbitration left before becoming a free agent. Boyd is not a three-month rental, and this explains why the asking price is so high.
Yankees, Tigers have discussed Matthew Boyd trade; Tigers reportedly asked for Gleyber Torres https://t.co/GQT5YSnHBV
— CBS Sports MLB (@CBSSportsMLB) June 29, 2019
Yankees Outlook
No team has suffered more injuries than the Yankees. But the Yankees still find themselves in an all too familiar spot, sitting atop the American League East division. The Yankees’ .650 winning percentage is the best in the American League. After a slow start, the Yankees have built a seven-game lead over the second place Tampa Bay Rays and nine-game lead over their hated rivals, the defending champion Boston Red Sox.
Despite injuries to several key players, this Yankee team is still loaded. The Yankee lineup is deep from top to bottom despite missing two starters from last season in Stanton and Miguel Andujar. The Yankees need to make sure their great bullpen does not get overworked, and the only way to ensure that is to get more length from their starting pitching.
Promising young player Clint Frazier, who was sent to the minors after the Yankees traded for Edwin Encarnacion, was heavily rumored to be the player that would be used in a trade. Frazier was not called back up to the majors after Maybin and Stanton got hurt. The reasoning behind sending Frazier to the minors was so that he could play every day. When a spot opened up in the majors, Frazier was passed over. This could all but confirm he is going to be used as a trade chip by the Yankees.
Potential Trade Targets
The Yankees will be linked to every available starting pitcher. Aside from Boyd, pitchers like Marcus Stroman of the Toronto Blue Jays, Madison Bumgarner of the San Francisco Giants, and even Zack Wheeler from the crosstown New York Mets. In addition, if the Cleveland Indians find themselves out of playoff contention, they could make Corey Kluber or Trevor Bauer available.
The Yankees history suggests they will bring in a pitcher or two for the stretch run. You can almost guarantee that. What level of pitcher they trade for is anybody’s guess.
Main Photo
Embed from Getty Images
