Yankees Nathan Eovaldi Trade a Rare Loss for Brian Cashman

Even though it looked like a steal at the time, the trade that brought Nathan Eovaldi to the New York Yankees was ultimately a disappointment.

The logic behind the trade from the Yankees perspective was unquestionable. General manager Brian Cashman acquired 25-year-old starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi who could throw 100 mph, a sorely needed backup first baseman in Garrett Jones, and promising lottery ticket prospect Domingo German.

In return, New York surrendered a very average veteran infielder in Martin Prado and long reliever David Phelps.

The team had just signed Chase Headley to a four year deal, blocking Prado from his most natural position. In addition, Rob Refsnyder and Jose Pirela both looked like decent options to try at second base (of course that was before the Stephen Drew fiasco). 

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Phelps was a useful, but eminently replaceable arm during his time in the Bronx, compiling a 4.21 ERA in 299.1 IP. He was coming off two seasons of almost exactly replacement level production.

With the announcement Tuesday that Nathan Eovaldi would not only miss the remainder of this season, but the entirety of 2017 as well, it has become clear that the Miami Marlins officially “won” that trade.

Even when he was healthy, Eovaldi never put it all together in New York. All told, he had a 4.45 ERA and 4.11 FIP in 279 IP since the trade. First baseman Garrett Jones barely played last year, and when he did it was forgettable, hitting .215/.257/.361 in 152 PA before being released by the team down the stretch. 

The third piece in the trade, Domingo German, missed the entire 2015 season following TJ surgery, and has thrown just 39.2 IP split between Low-A Charleston and High-A Tampa this year.

On the other side, both of the guys the Yankees gave up have turned into solid contributors for the Marlins. Phelps has a 3.73 ERA and 3.63 FIP in 181 IP since the trade, establishing himself as a quality late inning arm this year. Prado has quietly been among the best third basemen in the National League, hitting .305/.357/.419 in 1041 PA for Miami.

All told, Eovaldi, Jones, and German have totaled 2.8 wins above replacement for the Yankees according to Baseball-Reference’s metric, while Phelps and Prado have combined for a whopping 8.7 WAR for the Fish. That’s a clear loss for GM Brian Cashman.

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Still, this trade was always a gamble for the Yankees. They were trading two established players for a young pitcher whose results on the mound were not matching his amazing stuff. If it had paid off, Cashman would have acquired the most valuable quantity in baseball, the young ace, for two guys who honestly looked like spare parts at the time.

Even with 20-20 hindsight, and acknowledging that New York lost this trade, I have no problem with the thinking behind it. The potential payoff would have been worth it. The Didi Gregorius trade that same winter was an example of the buying low on talent working out wonderfully.