Should The Yankees Trade For Manny Machado?
The Yankees are attempting to make another big World Series push, as can be seen with the pickup of ex-Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton. In the process of picking up Stanton, the Yankees have made moves that have left glaring holes in the infield at second and third base. With Starlin Castro now in Miami and Chase Headley now back in sunny San Diego, where do the Yankees move forward in the infield?
With the Yankees in full-on spending mode, many fans are hoping for General Manager Brian Cashman to pull the trigger on a potential deal that would bring star third basemen, Manny Machado, over to the Bronx. On the surface, Machado offers a lot of power at the top of the lineup and an all-world glove. However, given the pieces the Yankees might have to move, it might not make all that much sense. In a rumored deal, the Yankees would have to give up top IF prospect Gleyber Torres, one of either Justus Sheffield or Matt Adams, as well as some of the Yankees major league talent like Clint Frazier or Brett Gardner. While the Yankees outfield is crowded, moving Frazier or Gardner could be huge mistake.
The Yankees farm system is loaded with infield talent. Gleyber Torres is projected to not only be the top prospect in the Yankees’ farm system, but in the entire major leagues. Miguel Andujar is coming off a season where he hit for a .315/.353/.498 slash line and has shown significant power for a third baseman. While Torres and Andujar seem to be the future in the infield for the Yankees, Ronald Torreyes and newly acquired Jace Peterson can fill in the gaps until both prospects are ready to step into the limelight. Torreyes had an unexpectedly solid year in the big leagues, filling in for a hurt Starlin Castro for decent chunks of the season. Peterson, although signed to a minor-league deal, is only one season removed from a .254 average in the majors. This group shouldn’t be too much of a downgrade from last years’ infield.
More importantly, the Yankees have holes in other positions, mostly in the rotation. While Luis Severino and Masahiro Tanaka make a solid 1-2 duo, the Yankees will be without Michael Pineda next season. Considering the lack of depth, the Yankees may need to rely on some of their young prospects to become consistent parts of their rotation. If the prospects aren’t ready, Cashman may look to move one of them to help acquire a pitching target at the trade deadline.
With Manny Machado hitting free agency next summer, the Yankees do NOT need him right now. Considering acquiring him via free agency next summer wouldn’t cost them any assets, they might as well play the waiting game. At the end of the day, this is a team that was a few bombs away from making the World Series last year and they accomplished that by trading for Stanton.
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