Yankees: 5 trade deadline targets for NYY as Aug. 31 rapidly approaches

3. Ty Buttrey

The Yankees should swipe Angels back-end reliever Ty Buttrey.

The Los Angeles Angels (of Anaheim) are probably the saddest trade partner on this list. Hey, I don’t want ’em here, either! I want Mike Trout in that sixth or seventh playoff seed.

Somehow, though, even after MLB worked overtime to get their prince in the postseason, the Angels have lower playoff odds than the Baltimore Orioles. I don’t make the rules.

Therefore, the LAA should maybe be the most open-for-business team in the game (except maybe our No. 2 squad!), and Ty Buttrey in the ‘pen feels like the ideal addition for the Yankees, sliding right into the Kahnle role.

For all the talk about New York’s vaunted bullpen, Aroldis Chapman won’t be ready for a normal workload for quite some time, and Ottavino-Green-Britton is one arm short, based on the conservative way Aaron Boone deploys them, leaving Avilan and Jonathan Holder exposed.

Buttrey, though he’s a low-strikeout arm thus far in 2020, will be greeted with a solid infield defense behind him if he comes to New York. Last year, he whiffed 84 men in 72.1 innings pitched, which is more our speed, along with a Kahnle-like 3.98 ERA. Not a free agent until 2025, but not a clear superstar either, Buttrey could be a cost-effective long-term add, and hedge against Kahnle’s health in 2021.