Yankees: 7 Prospects New York Can Afford to Trade in Blockbuster Deals

2. Clarke Schmidt

Clarke Schmidt and Deivi Garcia could help the Yankees land a star.

Alongside Deivi Garcia, Clarke Schmidt is likely to contribute to the big league squad in some capacity during the 60-game season. According to reports, Schmidt appeared MLB-ready back in March.

If some in the organization are that high on Schmidt, there’s no doubt other teams are looking at him very closely. His impressive college performance and three-pitch repertoire are enticing aspects of the young righty’s game.

Schmidt currently sits at No. 2 on MLB.com’s ranking of the top Yankees prospects. He’s fresh off his first full season of minor league ball. In High-A ball, he made 12 starts, posting a 3.84 ERA in 63.1 innings to go along with 69 strikeouts.

He finished the season with a trio of impressive starts in Double-A Trenton. In a normal campaign, Schmidt could have been an easy candidate for September call-ups, but a packed schedule could see him land a spot start or a long relief role if needed.

With both Masahiro Tanaka and James Paxton set to hit free agency, New York may opt to keep some of their more MLB-ready arms around to fill the potential void. Still, Schmidt seems to be on track to be a successful starter in the bigs and could be a centerpiece in a blockbuster trade.

1. Deivi Garcia

Garcia is on the cusp of the big league roster and is in a very similar situation to Schmidt. He steamrolled through the Yankees’ minor league system, beginning in High-A and ending the year in Triple-A. Although his numbers faltered in Scranton Wilkes-Barre (5.40 ERA, 20 BB, 40 IP), Garcia was impressive for the vast majority of the season.

The downside here, as previously mentioned, is that New York would lack in-house options to replace Tanaka and Paxton if Garcia is dealt.

Still, on the surface, it looked like New York was certainly showcasing Garcia as the trade deadline approached last year. Although the Yankees were unable to land a big-time arm in 2019, a more experienced Garcia would be a huge haul for a team looking to rebuild its farm system.

It would certainly hurt to see Garcia moved after hearing so much hype about him a year ago, but if a superstar player becomes available, Garcia’s lack of major league — let alone upper-tier minor league — experience still makes him a question mark on a team ready to win now.