4 Unforgivable mistakes the Yankees could make this offseason

3. Trading Luke Voit to Improve…Something?

Want to add a gaping hole to the Yankees for no reason whatsoever? Trade Luke Voit!

As far as fan-created rumors go, trading Luke Voit feels like the ultimate Sam Presti “gotcha” move. “Sure, the Yankees have an MVP candidate playing first base in his first year of arbitration, but think of all the draft picks and prospects the 2025 Yankees could have if they traded him!”

Every 18-year-old on the internet is obsessed with having an elite farm system. That’s awesome. But we don’t hang banners for Somerset Patriots championships, and it’s not wise to jettison an inexpensive gem you found on the open market just to kick the can down the line and attempt to roll the dice again.

Voit has been integral to the Yankees lineup in every healthy game he’s played, proving over a dominant 213-game sample that he is not a fluke. His batted ball data, ridiculous power, and unquantifiable emotional contributions have all been a massive part of the Yanks’ rise, and besides, there’s no first baseman waiting in the wings who can at all mimic his skill set.

Want to move DJ LeMahieu to first, Gleyber Torres to second and sign a shortstop? Great; you’re losing a 40-homer bat there, and you’re going to want to check with an extended LeMahieu first to see if he has any interest in making the shift.

If the Yankees trade Luke Voit, they’re going to spend the next five years looking for another Luke Voit. That should be reason enough not to “sell high” on someone who, instead, should enter 2021 as a top-five player on your entire vaunted roster. Armchair GMs should probably sit this one out.