Yankees acquire LHP James Paxton from the Mariners for Justus Sheffield

The Yankees have acquired LHP James Paxton from the Mariners in exchange for top prospect Justus Sheffield, Don Thompson-Williams and RHP Erik Swanson.

Finally, some breaking news Yankees fans all hoped to hear! The Yankees have acquired Paxton from the Mariners to bolster their starting rotation for the 2019 season. And the thing is they’re probably not done yet.

Before any of you get frustrated that they traded Sheffield, many reports have surfaced that the organization lost some faith in Sheffield after his lack of development in 2018. Lack of control and concern about his stamina had some believing he might be better suited to pitch out of the bullpen instead of towards the top of the rotation.

Fans have to realize that the Yankees are in win now mode and are in no position to prospect hug. They have to give to get and with their rich farm system, they have the ability to make these type of trades.

What’s great is that both LHP Patrick Corbin and J. A. Happ are still free agents, ad the Yankees are still the favorites to sign one of them even after the Paxton deal. The Yanks can throw money at them to get them instead of more prospect, and they’re finally below the $197 million luxury tax threshold so they can afford either southpaw.

In the meantime picking up Paxton is a huge move for the Bombers. Paxton has two years of arbitration eligibility before he hits free agency in 2021. He posted a 3.76 ERA last season with the Mariners, going 11-6, with 208 strikeouts and a 1.10 WHIP.

Lindsey Adley of The Athletic tweeted that general manager Brian Cashman stated that he spent about a month negotiating with Dipoto about Paxton before acquiring him.

As general manager Brian Cashman stated, the Yankees were looking to add multiple starting pitchers this offseason. This hasn’t changed as Jon Morosi of MLB.com tweeted:

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So far, the Yankee starting rotation at the moment is as follows:

• RHP Luis Severino
• RHP Masahiro Tanaka
• LHP James Paxton
• RHP C.C. Sabathia

If they can still pick up Corbin and/or J. A. Happ, that would be fantastic. Corbin posted a 3.15 ERA in the 2018 regular season, going 11-7 and striking out 246. Happ was traded to New York by the Blue Jays in the 2018 midseason in exchange for INF Brandon Drury and OF Billy McKinney. Happ was an ace for the Yanks, posting a 2.69 ERA, going 7-0, striking out 63.

RHP Sonny Gray won’t be part of the Bombers in 2019 as Cashman and the team is likely to trade him in the coming days.

Let’s hope Cashman gets another elite starter, and the team will be set in the rotation for 2019. One step closer for the Yankees to be World Series bound.