Yankees: Four players with value who should be traded

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The Yankees continue to insist that unless they get blown away by another team’s offer for a trade, they’ll be sitting tight until the offseason. But here are four players the team should consider trading now before it’s too late.

The Yankees, led by General Manager Brian Cashman, seem to be quite content with the 25-man roster and the depth of replacements at the minor league level that has jettisoned them into first place in the American League East.

And in spite of Hal Steinbrenner’s recent attempt to engage in trade doublespeak, there is no reason to believe that the Yankees won’t stick to their guns, making moves only when they are forced to as the season develops.

On the surface, the Yankees would appear to be standing on firm ground in the stance they are taking. Because not only is the team producing a surprising number of wins on the field, there are no hiccups off the field or in the clubhouse.

The veterans on the team are taking care of the young guys on the team, and the Baby Bombers are wowing the veterans with their professionalism and contributions to the team as a whole. There has yet to appear even one story in the media in which a player whines about this or that.

And over the long haul of a season, that alone cannot be overestimated when it comes to having a winning formula on any team.

Despite all of that, there are a few players on the 40-man roster who should be considered in a trade. Each has their set of circumstances that accounts for this reasoning. And with the 40-man roster crunch coming sooner rather than later, the Yankees stand a chance to cash in on these players now, but later, maybe not so much.

Here then are four players who should be moved by the Yankees before August 1.

Mason Williams

The Yankees cast their die in the case of Mason Williams when they brought up Rob Refsnyder as a replacement for Jacoby Ellsbury, who landed on the DL Wednesday with a concussion and neck strain.

The argument is not that Williams should have been called up before Refsnyder. The team made a baseball decision based logically on which player could help the team the most in current time. A decision that is also mindful of Refsnyder’s versatility and ability to play positions in the infield should the need arise.

Instead, the question should turn to whether or not the Yankees have reached the end of the line with a player who was once their top prospect but is still languishing in the minor leagues.

Readers with a better memory than myself may recall that I penned a piece on New Year’s Eve in 2016 wondering if Williams was the odd man out in the team’s outfield plans.

It was true then, and it’s even truer now that Williams appears, for whatever reasons that Williams is merely an afterthought for the Yankees. And that’s not necessarily the Yankees fault.

Williams is currently hitting only .234 for the Triple-A Railriders and demonstrating none of the power that is associated with being an outfielder for the Pinstripes. And this is not the first time Williams had shot himself in the foot when an opportunity was on the horizon.

Drafted by the Yankees in 2010, he has now been with the organization for eight years with only 48 at-bats at the major league level.

Nevertheless, Williams still has that tag around his neck that says “potential.” After all these years, he’s still only 25. He’s also shown flashes of brilliance as recently as last season when he hit an overall .298 with three different teams in the minors.

Thus, he still has value. The Yankees have nothing to lose in trading Williams, and very little to gain unless Cashman can work his magic again. Williams can be a bonafide fourth outfielder for a team that needs one.

The umbilical cord between the Yankees and Williams needs to be cut if only to create a precious spot for protected players on the 40-man roster.

Brett Gardner

Presently, the Yankees find themselves with a left fielder with new found power who has hit more home runs in May than Aaron Judge. Which probably makes him a prime candidate to make the “let’s test him” list that is supposed to be random, but is not.

Brett Gardner is having a career year from the standpoint of being a power hitting outfielder. In a quarter of the 2017 season, he’s hit nine home runs which put him on pace to hit at least 30 home runs by the end of the year. He’s never hit more than 17 in a season (2014).

Gardner’s .280 batting average and .370 on-base percentage are also respectable. So, what’s there for another team not to like?

The thing with Gardner is that his trade value is not likely to be this high ever again. He’s on a tear, but he’s still Brett Gardner who, at the age of 33 is not likely to have found the magic potion that completely overturns his previous performances as a major league ballplayer.

Nevertheless, if the Yankees want to cash in on his new found success, there is no time better than the present. Because in any deal, you want value in return for value and Gardner can deliver that.

To make a deal, the Yankees would need to consider salary issues and perhaps eat a small portion of the money that is due to Gardner for the remainder of his contract, which is not that much regarding today’s baseball dollars.

With a team buyout of $2 million scheduled for 2019, or not maybe depending on how long he can keep this going, the remainder of his 2017 salary, and all of 2018, Gardner represents an expenditure of about $20 million for a team that would like to retain his services.

Pitching is what the Yankees have an immediate need for, and Gardner can get you that.

Having said that, Gardner is the type of player who will not be missed until he’s gone, especially this year when he’s taken on the needed role of providing veteran leadership for the team.

Sometimes though, you have to give up something to get something.

Tyler Wade

The Yankees infield, with the addition of Gleyber Torres and subtraction of Chase Headley when his contract expires at the end of next season, could be set for the next five to seven years.

With Didi Gregorius and Starlin Castro still in the emerging stars category and their youth, the Yankees would appear set up the middle, barring any serious injury to either of the two.

Tyler Wade’s signature position is at shortstop. The problem for the Yankees is that Wade is blossoming into a mirror image of Gregorius, which means that he is at least a tick above all major league shortstops with nowhere to go.

In 40 or so games with the Triple-A Railriders, Wade is hitting .310 with an on-base percentage approaching .400. He also has sixteen extra-base hits and is on pace to score 120 runs.

In a possible attempt to “save” him, the Yankees have used him at six different positions so far this season, hoping that he could be their Ben Zobrist of the future.

Given time, the strategy could work if the Yankees had more time to decide which of their 40 players will be protected in the near future.

Not to go unnoticed either is the fact that Wade has made fifteen errors with time divided between short, second, and third. That’s not okay.

Again though, when talking trades, the trick is to swap a player when his value is at its peak. In that regard, Wade doesn’t qualify as a Gleyber Torres, but he’s still in the top tier of the Yankees talent pool who can attract attention if he’s put out there.

The Yankees also have back-ups to be their Jack-of-all-trades super-sub. Miguel Andujar, Ronald Torreyes, and Jorge Mateo all qualify as candidates who fit the job description.

Wade will not be the star attraction in any deal the Yankees make. Instead, he’ll be the significant add-in that makes the trade happen in return for a star attraction.

Clint Frazier

The Yankees jumped with glee when they were able to pry Clint Frazier from the Cleveland Indians last season in the deal that sent Andrew Miller on his way.

But let’s get one thing straight from the get-go here. Frazier is not Aaron Judge, and he may not even be Aaron Hicks.

What he is is another dime a dozen power-hitting low-average outfielders who seem to exist with a halo over their head with no reason attached to it.

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In two seasons and about 300 at-bats at the Triple-A level, Frazier has managed to hit for a .243 average with eleven home runs, 35 RBI, and a paltry .310 on-base percentage. Double those home run and RBI totals, and you have a full season. That’s nothing to write home about.

Still, Frazier has that all-important word “potential” attached to his name, and the Yankees need to take advantage of that before it’s too late.

Which means that if the Yankees want to pursue a number one or number two starter, Frazier, with a Tyler Wade for instance thrown in, can get you that as part of a package deal that would need to be put together.

Unlike Gleyber Torres, who could be dealt straight up for Pirates ace, Gerrit Cole, if the Yankees wanted to go that route, Frazier doesn’t have that kind of drawing power. And more significantly, in all likelihood, he never will.

The Yankees are blessed with a plethora of talented outfielders in their farm system. In fact, my colleague, Cory Claus, recently wrote a brilliant piece claiming that the future outfield of the Yankees is already playing together at Class-A Charleston.

Yankees: Should they stay with the plan or go for number 28?

Soon, the Yankees will be facing their most crucial question of this young season. Do they stand pat or go for their 28th World Championship via trades?

Bottom line, Clint Frazier is expendable for the Yankees. Put him with another team that needs a power hitting corner outfielder, maybe not so much. There will be takers if Brian Cashman puts his name out there. But that window is closing fast.

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