Yankees: Ranking the Best Moves of the 2015-2016 Offseason

Acquiring Luis Cessa and Chad Green from the Detroit Tigers for Justin Wilson

Like the Castro trade, I am a little ashamed to admit I hated this deal initially for the Yankees when it was announced. Justin Wilson was undeniably awesome during his only season in pinstripes, pitching to a 3.10 ERA and 2.69 FIP in 74 appearances, striking out 27.1% of opposing batters and cutting his walks down to a career-low 8.1%.

In retrospect, Cashman probably cashed in Wilson at peak value after what may have been a career year. He was good, but not great for the Tigers this year, more or less an average lefty reliever, not the excellent setup man he looked like in 2015.

In return for Wilson, the Yankees received two starting pitchers who spent much of the second half in the team’s rotation, and are arguably the front runners for the two open starting jobs for 2017.

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Although his peripheral stats were ugly, Luis Cessa especially looks like a real find by Cashman. He’s got four quality pitches that a mixes well, good control, and a rubber arm that is perfect for the back of the rotation.

Green saw a huge spike in his velocity after joining the organization, and his impressive heater alone makes him worth being patient with. He’s another guy who likely tops out as a number four or five (if not a long reliever), but those kind of depth arms are a very valuable and necessary part of any club.

With the team in danger of losing three of their most established veteran starters after next year, the Yankees need all of the controllable rotation depth it can find. Both Cessa and Green have shown the potential to keep their team in games every five days and are controlled cheaply for another five seasons.

Looking around the league at what team’s are paying for even the most washed-up, mediocre starters, it becomes clear what a great deal this was for the franchise going into 2017 and beyond. And as good as this trade looks now, it could look amazing next season if even one of these guys turns into a reliable MLB starter.