Yankees Brian Cashman will craft his final legacy today
By Cory Claus
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall
…that this team will someday need replacements. Take center field. Even if Aaron Hicks is exactly what he has looked like so far this season, he is a free agent in 2020. The Yankees will either have to pay him or someone of equal talent, from the free agent market.
Unless they have a home grown replacement ready to go, which would be preferable.
Especially because most GM’s would like to save their money for pitching, Cashman is no different. And Rutherford is already gone, and profiles as a corner outfielder anyway. So what will the answer be when it is eventually asked?
Is Dustin Fowler the answer? Is he as good as he looked at Triple-A? Because if Cashman trades Florial, he is declaring Fowler, the fielder of the future.
Florial, though, is a better choice. He is younger, not even needing to be on the 40-man this off-season, and therefore has a lot more years under control than even Fowler. And the full-time job doesn’t open up for two more seasons beyond this one.
Even if their talent is equal, Florial’s age puts him in the right spot; timing is everything in baseball. He projects to be ready for the Bronx in 2019 or ’20.
After Florial, there is no true centerfielder anywhere in the Yankees top 30 prospects. If Cashman is serious about shooting for multiple championships, he might need Estevan, and others. But if he thinks it is worth it to go all in on Gray, he will drain the system more than you realize.
That means the Yankees Have to Win Now
It seems likely that the Yankees will have to part with three or four prospects to get Gray. Right now that might mean Florial (5), Mateo (8), Domingo Acevedo (10) and possibly James Kaprielian (12). If so, take a look at what that does to the future of the farm.
First, that would take four of the Yankees top 12 prospects, who are also the future replacements. Clint Frazier is a now player, clearly, and it’s likely that Gleyber Torres starts in the 2018 Yankees infield.
The replacement depth gets iffy after that. Chance Adams (3) looks great to most of us, but the Yankees are not sold. Dustin Fowler (4) might have permanently put it all together but is unproven and currently injured; ditto Justus Sheffield (6).
Tyler Wade (7) has not shown yet he can hit at the major league level, and Andujar (9) is another now player, again, unproven but promising.
Most of the rest of the prospects after those are pitchers, and pitchers are notoriously difficult to predict. So, where are the replacement position players going to come from, when Didi or Starlin become free agents? Who replaces Hicks and Gardner over the next two years? And who will be left to trade if needs arise?
Yes, there will be players on the free agent market, but Cashman will want to load up on new starting pitchers. For example, Jaime Garcia, CC Sabathia, and Michael Pineda all have to be replaced next year.