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Yankees should explore this non-Francisco Lindor trade with Indians

ByThomas Carannante|
CLEVELAND, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 30: Starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco #59 of the Cleveland Indians pitches during the first inning of Game Two of the American League Wild Card Series against the New York Yankees at Progressive Field on September 30, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 30: Starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco #59 of the Cleveland Indians pitches during the first inning of Game Two of the American League Wild Card Series against the New York Yankees at Progressive Field on September 30, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)

The Yankees could trade with the Indians for a player other than Lindor.

If you trust ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan, then you’ll believe that the New York Yankees aren’t going to land Cleveland Indians star shortstop this offseason. The fit has largely been questionable, but fans and pundits insisted on connecting the dots because of the uncertainty surrounding DJ LeMahieu’s return and Gleyber Torres’ defense.

From a practicality standpoint, it’s unrealistic, and we should continue to approach it in that manner. It would require too much heavy lifting for the Yankees (trading top prospects and dishing out a huge contract), not to mention reinventing a perfectly fine infield.

However, the Indians have other players the Yankees can trade for and we’d like to think general manager Brian Cashman sees value in Carlos Carrasco, who would immediately provide stability behind Gerrit Cole.

The Indians are cutting costs and likely won’t be contending in 2021. That’s the signal you’re giving when you’re open to trading your best player. And if Cleveland values one thing, it’s cost-effective pitching, which they have a ton of. So if they’re instituting a re-tool and have the necessary arms to make do, why not move Carrasco?

The complication here is that the Yankees reportedly won’t be spending much more beyond LeMahieu if they manage to bring the slugger back. If that’s the case, then the $12 million owed to Carrasco in 2021 and 2022 could be viewed as too much (he also has a $14 million team option for 2023 with a $3 million buyout).

But the fit with Carrasco should out-weigh the price because the right-hander perfectly slides into the Yankees’ prime championship window and is certainly cost-effective in regards to what he brings to the table.

Since 2014, the 33-year-old has quietly been among the most reliable pitchers in all of baseball. Across 194 games (155 starts), Carrasco is 77-54 with a 3.41 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 1,141 strikeouts in 1,004 innings of work. That’s better than Trevor Bauer’s last seven seasons and you’d be paying less than half of the AAV.

The fact of the matter is that there isn’t a big arm on the open market for the taking and we’re primed to believe Cashman isn’t going to sell a portion of the farm system for a promising up-and-coming controllable starter. So why not offer the Indians Deivi Garcia, Albert Abreu and Estevan Florial and call it a day? The addition of another starter is going to either bump Garcia or Clarke Schmidt from the rotation, and we’d estimate the organization values Schmidt more.

That’ll give you at least two years of Carrasco at $13.5 million per season and then you can assess after that. Let other pitching prospects develop. Maybe add another starter next offseason or package more players for another pitcher in the coming months. Whatever it may be, there’s a deal to be had here and Cashman should explore it.

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