Yankees: The case for trading Sonny Gray for prospects

Could trading Sonny Gray be the part of the Yankees answer for improving their rotation? The team stands to gain on all sides by doing just that.

The Yankees need to improve their pitching staff. Everybody knows that. All season long, the rotation has been the talk of the town. The team continues to try to solve its pitching woes internally.

However, the recent demotion of Domingo German suggests that strategy isn’t working.

It’s practically guaranteed that general manager Brian Cashman will trade for at least one starter. And it’s entirely possible the Yanks might also adopt the philosophy of “addition by subtraction.”

Various sources are now reporting that Gray is drawing some interest on the trade market (‘YGY’ first wrote about this early last week). Tyler Conway of Bleacher Report counters those rumors, as he writes that a trade is unlikely.

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"“New York Yankees pitcher Sonny Gray has drawn interest from teams ahead of the trade deadline but is reportedly unlikely to be traded."

Jon Heyman of FanCred reported the Yankees’ ‘main interest is in adding to its rotation, not subtracting from it.’

The Yanks shouldn’t be so quick to shut down the idea of trading Gray. Despite some improvement over his last two starts, Gray has struggled mightily under the New York spotlight. Just two weeks ago, Gray had one of the worst earned run averages among qualified starters.

According to ESPN News Services, Gray’s ERA stood at 5.84 as of July 8th, which ranked third-highest among all starters. The splits show that Gray can’t get the job done at home; his earned run average in the Bronx is four runs higher (7.62) than his ERA on the road (3.62.)

As a Yankee pitcher, you have to be able to pitch at The Stadium. Gray has been given plenty of chances to show that he can consistently provide the Yankees quality starts at home. The writing is on the wall; Gray and the pressures of New York don’t mix well.

Trading Gray makes a lot of sense. Ideally, the Bombers would send him to a National League team that’s intrigued by his performance in road starts. The Yankees could get some decent, if not excellent, prospects in return. These acquisitions could then further the team’s push to acquire another starter.

Next: As of now, which starters can the Yankees depend on?

Alternatively, the prospects of this hypothetical Gray trade could aid Cashman in restocking the farm system. While the farm is very deep right now, the Yanks will have to part with some highly-touted prospects if they trade for an impact starter.

All in all, trading Sonny Gray seems like a win-win.