Yankees Rumors: McHugh and/or Gattis Make Sense for NYY?

Recent rumors suggest that the New York Yankees could be a fit for starting pitcher Colin McHugh and/or designated hitter Evan Gattis of the Houston Astros going into the Winter Meetings.

The Houston Astros seem to be running out of roster space after all their recent big moves, as Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports that “they would listen” on right-handed starter Colin McHugh and DH/backup catcher Evan Gattis at the Winter Meetings and suggests that the pair could interest the New York Yankees.

The Yankees have not hid the fact that they are shopping for a young, controllable starting pitcher and a veteran power bat to serve as their primary DH in 2017, so it’s clear why Cafardo sees this tandem as a match for the club.

The 29-year-old McHugh put up a 4.34 ERA and 3.95 FIP in 184.2 IP for the ‘Stros last year and has been a consistent innings eater for them the last three seasons. He’s accumulated 8.5 wins above replacement over that span according to Baseball-Reference’s metric, making him a slightly above average MLB starter.

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Even if that’s not the sexiest profile in the world, it would have a lot of appeal for a team whose rotation features so many question marks both in 2017 and going into the future as the Yankees. Boring consistency has its uses too.

As for Gattis, he could take over the role Brian McCann was expected to have before being shipped to Houston, the primary DH who also spells Gary Sanchez occasionally behind the plate. The 30-year-old slugger known as “El Oso Blanco” hit .251/.319/.508 with 32 home runs and 72 RBI in 2016.

It’s not clear what the Astros are looking for in return for these guys, but it might be worth asking if Brett Gardner makes sense as part of a package. Houston was rumored to have interest in adding Gardy during the McCann trade talks. New York obviously has plenty of prospect depth to balance things out.

Next: Predicting the Yankees' Moves at the Winter Meetings

Despite what Cafardo’s sources are telling him, I would be surprised to see the Astros subtract from their big league club like this when they are clearly in win-now mode. Their rotation was a major weakness last year, and with no real free agent alternatives available, moving McHugh seems like a strange choice. I guess we’ll see if anything more comes of this rumor.