Yankees: 3 NYY trade targets you probably haven’t considered

2. Pablo Lopez

We’ve seen the Yankees rumored as Pablo Lopez suitors recently. Could Derek Jeter help us out again?

Perhaps, with the Marlins emerging as actual contenders in the NL East way ahead of schedule in 2020, they might be willing to deal with the Yankees as peers instead of plunderers this time around?

With new GM Kim Ng, an ex-Yankees executive, in place thanks to Derek Jeter, this could remain a fruitful relationship.

Pablo Lopez, a mid-rotation Marlins starter, just wrapped up his first effective MLB campaign and is entering his age-25 season and final year of pre-arbitration. While his changeup is special and his age is enticing, there’s no real long-term track record here, and Miami has drafted tons of arms they plan to slot into the rotation in the not-so-distant future behind Sixto Sanchez and Sandy Alcantara.

Max Meyer, Braxton Garrett, and Nick Neidert are all knocking on the fivesome’s door, which could allow Lopez to be poached from the large group of New Yorkers who’ve flocked south to Miami for the cold winter (also the summer, they work there permanently).

Lopez isn’t an ace, but there’s a lot to like about his command-and-control package, and his 3.61 ERA and over a strikeout per inning in 2020 (59 in 57.1) was encouraging. Without a ton of high-profile young names on the trade market, this would be a very low boom potential acquisition without a lot of bust probability either. Could Miami be a willing conversationalist? They almost always are.

And speaking of Marlins who were unexpectedly dealt…