Yankees Altering Trade Approach with Team’s Daily Results

The Yankees front office is still feuding in preparation of the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline, and according to Jon Heyman, still yo-yoing its position with the team’s daily results.

The Yankees faced two inner-division challengers to start their second-half. They began play at 44-44, lost two of three to the Red Sox and took three of four from the Orioles.

Over the club’s four-game winning streak, the rotation pitched 23.1 innings of three-run baseball. Not to be lost in the fray were encouraging middle-relief outings from Anthony Swarzak, Nick Goody, Chasen Shreve, and Chad Green.

However, general manager Brian Cashman is seeing through the numbers. The Yankees have put up a +6 run differential since Aug. 15, but they’ve had the luxury of hitting against the likes of Yovanni Gallardo, Vance Worley, and a struggling David Price. 

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The Yankees, now at 48-47, have improved their overall .500 standing by just one game since returning from the All-Star break seven days ago. At that rate of play, they’ll only be two games over at the deadline and hardly in a position to buy. The four-game streak was a timely burst of life, but it should not be considered an encouraging measure for playoff contention.

In the midst of the Yankees’ winning, Cashman met with team officials late Sunday night and reiterated his desire to sell his assets. The committee left the conference collectively undecided on the club’s future direction, which Heyman’s source tells him isn’t uncommon.

“One day they are [selling], the next they aren’t,” an anonymous rival team leaked to Heyman.

If the Yankees ultimately can’t stave off Fire Sale 2K16, Heyman says Michael Pineda, Nathan Eovaldi and Brett Gardner could find themselves being shopped with Andrew Miller, Aroldis Chapman and Carlos Beltran.

Interestingly, a friend of Pineda that spoke with Heyman said a trade might be best for the right-hander and that, “New York is not a good fit for Michael.” Obviously Pineda has been mired in a two-year funk on the mound, so I wonder if a displeased Yankees fan base has struck the wrong chord.

Pineda seems to be generating more trade interest than Eovaldi, despite Evo’s better numbers and recent reports linking him to the Pirates. In his last outing, Eovaldi cruised through five shutout innings against the Orioles before running into trouble. He would collect one more out and depart after loading the bases for Swarzak, who cleaned up the mess and preserved “Nasty” Nate’s scoreless line. Heyman opines that teams are scared away by Eovaldi’s heavy reliance on his upper-90s, but poorly located fastball.

Both Michael Pineda and Nathan Eovaldi  are arbitration eligible until they become free agents following the 2017 season. Pineda is 4-9 with a 5.25 ERA while Eovaldi is barely ahead with a run-supported 8-6 record and 4.93 ERA that includes three relief appearances.

The time is rapidly approaching for ownership to make up it’s mind. Owner Hal Steinbrenner sat idly by this off-season as every major league free agent found homes with other clubs. He cited albatross contracts as a misuse of roster space and declared “win now with an eye toward the future” as the organization’s new motto. Well, the Yankees aren’t exactly winning now and they’ve yet to have a better chance at swapping their veterans for young talent.

Next: Yankees Lose Trade Leverage with Cubs After the Montgomery Deal

Capitalizing on the stellar performances of Miller, Chapman and Beltran would give the Yankees a future core exceedingly quicker than years of drafting ever could. Let’s face it: if it were any other pedigree than that of the Yankees, selling would have already been deemed acceptable and necessary.

Now is not the moment to back down from previously stated goals. Owners of a $3.4 billion business must handle their fears of temporary decreases in attendance and ratings. The Yankees have the financial might to stomach a rebuild while advertising a youthful roster, which will be a draw to the fans who crave new blood on the field. It’s the only plan that could bring the Pinstripes back to late-October baseball in the not-too-distant future.