Yankees: 6 infield trade targets for the offseason’s final month

We’re exactly one month away from the start of Spring Training, and the Yankees don’t appear to have a definitive plan for second base or third base.

At the Winter Meetings, the Yankees dealt away both Starlin Castro and Chase Headley and have yet to replace either one of them.

Sure, the team added Jace Peterson on a minor league contract, but the 27-year-old Peterson batted just .215 in 89 games with Atlanta last year. He might keep Gleyber Torres’ seat warm for a couple of weeks while the Yanks squeeze an extra year of service time out of their top prospect, but that’s about it. Most likely, he’s another Donovan Solano.

Presently, Brian Cashman appears content to cobble together some combination of Peterson, Tyler Wade, Ronald Torreyes and Miguel Andujar until Torres is ready.

A reunion with Todd Frazier isn’t out of the question, but the Toddfather’s market price might be higher than the team is willing to pay. In an unusually quiet offseason, we’ve heard next to nothing about Frazier’s free agency.

With approximately $10-15 million of spendable money remaining, the club has been openly seeking to bolster its rotation. The Yankees’ starting five, though terrific when healthy, hinges on Masahiro Tanaka’s partially torn UCL and CC Sabathia’s poor, overworked knees.

The Yankees were heavily linked to Gerrit Cole (who, sickeningly, is now an Astro) in December and, according to MLB’s Bryan Hoch, they’ve recently exchanged numbers with free agent Yu Darvish.

Still, the Yankees don’t exactly need another pitcher. They’re not without internal options. Cashman has told us with a straight face that he’s planning on trying Chad Green as a starter. Domingo German looked terrific at the end of last season. Luis Cessa should be healthy. And both Chance Adams and Justus Sheffield will likely make their major league debuts in 2018.

If the team can’t wrangle any big-time arms before February, that available money might be better spent on another infielder. While young and promising, there are too many potential pitfalls with this current group for Cash & Co. to stand pat.

At this point, we know who the free agents are. But if the Yankees are looking for meaningful help at second base and third base, they should also keep an eye on the trade market. After all, Cashman has a real knack for acquiring undervalued talent.

All that is to say, here are six potential infield trade targets for the Yankees as we near the end of the 2017-18 offseason. These players vary in their roles and contract sizes, but they’re either one-year rentals or long-term controllable.

With Torres and Andujar on the way, there’s no point paying a veteran for multiple years if he’s going to be displaced anyway. Alright, enough preamble.

1. Jurickson Profar, Rangers

The Yankees have long had interest in Profar, who was ranked as the game’s top overall prospect by Baseball America before the 2013 season. In fact, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported back in November that the Yanks were “making a push” to acquire the Texas farmhand.

Unfortunately, a combination of injuries and ineffectiveness have largely rendered the Curacao native production-less during the intervening five years. He’s played in just 206 career major league games and batted a mere .229/.309/.329. In 2017, Profar appeared in 22 contests for Texas.

Nevertheless, Profar is still quite young (25 on Opening Day). He can handle all four infield positions, which would come in handy considering Greg Bird might be made out of a combination of glass and feathers. And if you squint hard enough, you can still catch a glimmer of that old uber-prospect sheen.

Between Joey Gallo at first base, Rougned Odor at second base, Adrian Beltre at third base and Elvis Andrus at shortstop, Texas features one of the game’s most hitter-ish infields.

Profar figures to compete with Hanser Alberto for the utility job and it’s not hard to envision a real opportunity opening up for him at some point. At the same time, Profar’s fitness for that opportunity depends entirely on how well he’s hitting the baseball.

Ultimately, Profar is probably expendable. If Texas is serious about making a playoff push (and all signs point to yes), they need to deepen their pitching staff. The Yankees surely wouldn’t deal any of their top six relievers straight-up for Profar. But with the Bombers’ depth of arms, they could undoubtedly slap together a compelling offer.

Profar would still have to hit to earn playing time. But he’s controllable through 2021, and the Yanks could bring him along slowly. With how long he’s been around, it’s easy to forget how young Profar still is.

He’s likely never going to become the superstar he was once touted as, but Profar should still have a real future as a productive big league infielder.

2. Hernan Perez, Brewers

You want to talk about versatility? Perez played all nine positions (including pitcher) over the course of 136 games for Milwaukee in 2017. Most of his reps came at third base and in the outfield, although he did start 16 games at second base.

He’s no slouch with the bat, either. Perez is a low on-base guy, but he hits the ball hard. He swatted .259/.289/.414 with 14 dingers and 13 steals last season. It’s feasible that Perez, 27 come Opening Day, could bump that homer total up to 20.

Another plus: Perez is a terrific contact hitter. He K’d just 79 times in 432 at-bats last year. Although he doesn’t walk at all, Perez’s competent aggression would be an intriguing contrast to the Yankees’ patient offensive style.

Like Profar, Perez will probably begin the season as the fifth wheel in one of baseball’s nastiest infields. Milwaukee, who missed the postseason by a single game in 2017, boasts a combination of Eric Thames at first base, Jonathan Villar at second base, Travis Shaw at third base and Orlando Arcia at shortstop.

Perez and Eric Sogard are Milwaukee’s two best bench players, and they’re both infielders. Perhaps Perez could be had for the right price.

It would cost more to get Perez than it would acquire Profar, just because Perez is a better hitter. But Milwaukee is another team that a) really wants to make the playoffs and b) could really use some more pitching.

The Brewers’ rotation is their weakness. Jordan Montgomery is off the table here, but what about Domingo German? German pitched exceptionally well in Scranton last summer and the Yankees like him a great deal.

But as previously mentioned, starting pitching depth isn’t the most pressing issue for this Yankees club, primarily if they can acquire another one from outside the organization. A package based around German and, say, Ben Heller, might be enough to pique the Brewers’ interest.

Perez, a native of Venezuela, is also controlled through 2021.

3. Josh Harrison, Pirates

Pittsburgh just dealt Gerrit Cole to Houston. And earlier this winter, Pirates general manager Neal Huntington made an ominous remark about Andrew McCutchen’s future with the club, which turned into him to being traded, this time to the Giants.

If the Pirates are serious about blowing it up, that deconstruction probably begins with Josh Harrison, a 30-year-old two-time All-Star.

Harrison would be a tremendous addition to any team’s lineup. Manning second base, third base and the outfield for the Bucs in 2017, he slashed .272/.339/.442 with 16 home runs and 12 steals en route to his second All-Star nod.

The quintessential sparkplug, Harrison stands at just five-foot-eight, giving him a compact strike zone which he commands expertly. He whiffed only 90 times in 486 at-bats last season, and even though he doesn’t walk, he’s never an easy out.

Harrison could bat ninth and form a formidable double-leadoff tandem with Brett Gardner, 9-1 in the Yankees’ order. Plus, he brings a steady glove and plenty of experience to both second and third base.

Harrison is owed $10.25M next season. The obligation is significant, but it fits comfortably within the team’s budget and would still give Cashman $10 million or so to work with at the trade deadline. Plus, Harrison’s contract is essentially a series of team options.

The Yanks could return him for $10.5M in 2019 or buy him out for $1M. In 2020, they could either pay him $11.5M or buy him out for $500k. Necessarily, the Yankees can choose whether they want Harrison on a one-year deal, a two-year deal or a three-year deal. It’s i-deal, really.

Of course, Harrison won’t come cheap. Pittsburgh reportedly wanted both Clint Frazier and Andujar for Cole, so it stands to reason the Yankees would have to part with an upper-tier prospect for Harrison.

If we’re talking Chance Adams, I could see something coming together. If Pittsburgh wants Estevan Florial, well, this might not work out.

Harrison is a terrific player, but he’s not the kind of guy you empty the farm for. If the Yankees can acquire him on their terms, they should jump at the opportunity. But they should walk away before they overpay.

4. David Freese, Pirates

The Great Pirate Sell-Off continues with David Freese, Pittsburgh’s third baseman. At 34 years of age, Freese is on the downswing of his career. Still, his veteran savvy would be welcome in a Yankees clubhouse brimming with, as Clyde Frazier might term them, precocious neophytes.

Freese is your basic league-average hitter. He batted .263/.368/.371 last season in 130 games for Pittsburgh with 10 home runs and 52 RBI. It’s odd that his on-base and slugging percentages were nearly identical — Freese’s 26 extra-base hits were the lowest of his eight-year career.

However, Freese had down years power-wise in 2013 and 2014 before recapturing his thunder by slugging .420 in 2015. If he did it once, it stands to reason he might be able to do it again.

Freese has always been a third baseman. But he has started 37 games at first and could do so again in a pinch. Even at the major league level, first base is so much easier than any big league third baseman worth his salt can provide at least adequate defense across the diamond. We saw Chase Headley do it last year.

At $4.25M, Freese’s contract is quite reasonable. He’s got a $6M team option with a $500k buyout for 2019 — also quite feasible. Given his age, Freese can probably be had for salary relief and a mid-level prospect.

If you’re the Yankees, why not take a flier on Freese? His presence would allow the team to be patient with Andujar and his experience, and track record gives him a leg up on Tyler Austin in the battle for a right-handed bench bat, once the kids are ready.

If he sucks, they can just release him. But the chances are that Freese deepens the team’s options without sucking down too much money or an unnecessary roster spot.

5. Sean Rodriguez, Pirates

You’ve heard of the Three Musketeers, right? Well, this is something sort of like that.

The 32-year-old Rodriguez is entering his 11th season in the big leagues, and during much of that time, he’s been a role player. One of baseball’s consummate utilitymen, Rodriguez spotted all eight positions across the diamond despite appearing in just 54 games with the Braves and Pirates in 2017.

Coming off his best season in 2016, in which he batted .270/.349/.510 with a career-high 18 homers for the Pirates, Rodriguez earned himself a two-year deal with Atlanta.

But tragically, Rodriguez, as well as his wife and sons, suffered multiple injuries in a horrific car crash last spring. His season, if not his career, seemed in jeopardy.

Heroically, Rodriguez quickly worked his way back to full health and took the field for the Braves midway through the 2017 campaign. He was dealt back to Pittsburgh on August 5 where he finished out the season.

But if the Pirates are selling, Rodriguez and his $5.5M salary should be one of the first ones dealt. A low-level prospect or two should be enough to get something done.

At the very least, Rodriguez would give the Yankees another proven bench piece alongside Torreyes, Austin Romine and Jacoby Ellsbury. He’s on a one-year contract so the team can easily move on if he isn’t performing.

After the events of last spring, it’s no wonder Rodriguez wasn’t himself in ’17. Given a fully healthy offseason, he should be in better shape this time around, both physically and mentally. While he might not hit at an All-Star level as he did two years ago, Rodriguez, when he’s right, is one of the game’s better bench bats.

6. Jed Lowrie, Athletics

The 33-year-old Lowrie enjoyed another fine campaign as Oakland’s primary second baseman in 2017. He hit .277/.360/.448 with 14 home runs and a career-high 73 walks in 153 games. It was the best all-around season of Lowrie’s 10-year career.

A versatile switch-hitter, Lowrie has logged 508 career games at shortstop, 276 games at second base and 131 games at third base. He’s a valuable player and whether or not Oakland is even willing to deal him depends on how close the A’s believe they are, in their heart of hearts, to contending for that second Wild Card.

Look, if the Twins made it last year, nothing is impossible. The A’s have an intriguing young lineup, and Lowrie is a lynchpin at the top. If Oakland were to deal him, it’s more likely that they do so in July, rather than in January.

But Lowrie will be on every team’s radar. His versatility and experience allow him to slot in as either an everyday infielder or as a reserve. He can bat near the top or bottom of an order. He hits lefties better than righties but can hold his own against almost anyone.

If Lowrie were on the Yankees’ roster right now, he would start, no question. But by the trade deadline, if Torres and Andujar have stepped in as expected, the Yankees might look at Lowrie as an elite bench piece.

Lowrie is owed $6M in 2018, and he’ll hit the open market after the season. He’ll probably cost one decent-to-upper prospect (think German or Thairo Estrada) or a couple of mid-level guys.