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Yankees: 3 underrated options Yankees must target at 2020 deadline

By Adam Weinrib |
Mike Minor #42 of the Texas Rangers pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the top of the fifth inning at Globe Life Field on August 28, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The day honoring Jackie Robinson, traditionally held on April 15, was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.” (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
Mike Minor #42 of the Texas Rangers pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the top of the fifth inning at Globe Life Field on August 28, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The day honoring Jackie Robinson, traditionally held on April 15, was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.” (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
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The New York Yankees need to make trade deadline upgrades. What about these three?

Though we’ve spent a lot of time criticizing the Yankees for their injury-riddled mediocrity (and rightfully so!),  the team gets an “incomplete” for their bizarre “first half” of 2020.

Most of the theoretical roster isn’t actually here on the field, and many of their trade deadline options either wouldn’t improve the team all that much, or would cost a significant amount considering uncertainty reigns in ’20. Who wants to surrender top prospects for a rental when the season could shut down at any moment?

Unfortunately, the Yanks aren’t getting to the mountaintop without making a few improvements, especially as injuries have laid their depth bare. Without a full rotation, middle infield, or bullpen, New York should weigh adding these three mostly-unmentioned targets by end of day today.

Mike Minor #23 of the Texas Rangers pitches during the game against the Oakland Athletics at RingCentral Coliseum on August 6, 2020 in Oakland, California. The Athletics defeated the Rangers 6-4. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images)
Mike Minor #23 of the Texas Rangers pitches during the game against the Oakland Athletics at RingCentral Coliseum on August 6, 2020 in Oakland, California. The Athletics defeated the Rangers 6-4. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/Oakland Athletics/Getty Images) /

3. Mike Minor

The Yankees need a qualified lefty like Mike Minor starting games for them in 2020.

You may remember Mike Minor from his virtuoso performance in bothering Red Sox beat writers in 2019. His Rangers teammates let a foul pop up fall in a meaningless late-season game against Boston specifically so he could record his 200th K, Pete Abraham grunted blood on Twitter, and baseball marched on. Pretty hilarious.

But beyond his status as a notorious Boston troll, this story is notable because, well, Minor whiffed 200+ men last season in 208.1 innings. The 32-year-old Minor is coming off three fairly consistent seasons, and though 2019 was the crescendo, there’s a lot to like from his recent body of work. Prior to the eighth-place Cy Young finish he posted last year, Minor went 6-6 with a 2.55 mark out of the Kansas City bullpen in 2017, and had a 4.18 mark in his transition back into the rotation in Texas the next season.

Though Minor’s been bitten by the small sample size bug in ’20, his most recent start featured six shutout innings against the Dodgers, as strong an argument as any for his usefulness as the deadline approaches.

Lance Lynn is going to be grabbing the trade headlines in Texas, but Minor should be a willing swingman and a cheaper option as a semi-permanent bandage for a Yankees team treading dangerously close to “TBD” territory in their patchwork rotation.

Miguel Castro #50 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches against the Washington Nationals at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on August 14, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. The game was a continuation of a suspended game from August 9, 2020. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
Miguel Castro #50 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches against the Washington Nationals at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on August 14, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. The game was a continuation of a suspended game from August 9, 2020. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /

2. Miguel Castro

The Baltimore Orioles have a lot of relief help for the Yankees. Seriously!

As the Orioles begin to slip out of contention in the AL East and likely absorb reality a bit, they should be entertaining any and all trade options.

We wish we could’ve brought former Yankees lefty Richard Bleier back before he was dumped off to the Marlins, but the O’s still have one or two serious options who could help the Yanks. At this point in Baltimore’s rebuild — which is going well! — the team should not be shying away from dealing within the division simply because they’re helping out their dreaded rivals. The previous Orioles administration flipped Eduardo Rodriguez to Boston for Andrew Miller when they had a chance to contend, and sold Zack Britton to the Yanks in 2018; wouldn’t they be keen on absorbing Yankees assets one more time?

We liked Mychal Givens a lot, but he’s a Colorado Rockie now. Luckily, we also have a thing for the thundering peripherals and nasty cutting action of Miguel Castro, who never really gets brought up in these types of conversations.

Castro, an underrated wild man in the mold of Tampa Bay’s Diego Castillo, has a remarkable 24 K in 15.2 innings of action, and could likely be harnessed with a dedicated pitching coach by his side. Two years after striking out only 57 men in 86.1 innings pitched, clearly something has clicked in the very controllable 25-year-old.

Givens was always the most likely arm to go, but Castro could be an interesting role of the dice, and a project for beyond 2020.

Andrelton Simmons #2 of the Los Angeles Angels makes a play on a ball hit by Marcus Semien #10 of the Oakland Athletics in the sixth inning at RingCentral Coliseum on August 23, 2020 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Andrelton Simmons #2 of the Los Angeles Angels makes a play on a ball hit by Marcus Semien #10 of the Oakland Athletics in the sixth inning at RingCentral Coliseum on August 23, 2020 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

1. Andrelton Simmons

Someone is going to trade for multi-time Gold Glover Andrelton Simmons. It’s probably going to be the Toronto Blue Jays, an extremely interested party.

So why can’t we get the Yankees going with some urgency here?

Surely you’ve noticed, but the Yanks do not have a shortstop. Tyler Wade isn’t it. Jordy Mercer has been nice, but … folks … yeah. Even a healthy Gleyber Torres (ducks while being pelted with tomatoes) hasn’t been an effective or comfortable shortstop yet in 2020.

Simmons, on the other hand, is as low-risk an addition as it can get this season. He’s a known commodity and a rental, and he’d be more than willing to slide into a mentorship role when Torres returns, you’d think, seeing as it’d be far from a permanent home for him.

We’re not talking about anything that needs to factor into the Yankees’ long-term infield plans. We’re just advocating for ruining a rival’s trade plans by not allowing Toronto to replace Bo Bichette with a star at the position, as well as importing the best possible insurance policy available.

In 2017 and 2018, Simmons finished eighth and 14th in the MVP race. That’s the type of talent who’s available right now for a top-30 prospect, seeing as there’s no long-term security attached to his name. Even if it doesn’t work out, and even if Torres returns ahead of schedule in a week, why would you not take that chance with the Jays in the very same fray?

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