Yankees have golden excuse to take control of AL after Snell trade

The Yankees have no excuse not to snag the American League reins after the Rays traded Blake Snell.

The San Diego Padres and the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers appear to be the only MLB teams currently deciding to “go for it,” adding to a playoff-caliber roster or sitting on the throne, stroking the trophy. Naturally, it’s time for us to argue in favor of the Yankees joining them.

With the Tampa Bay Rays’ self-neutering on Sunday night, trading Blake Snell across the country the second his tax hit became slightly elevated, that removes another American League rival for the Yanks in 2021.

And even though fans in the Bronx right now are so annoyed by stagnation that they’re currently inclined to accept a DJ LeMahieu extension as a successful offseason and move on, it’s never been clearer that the Yankees should parlay any LeMahieu addition into several more moves to shore up the corners of their roster.

Granted, a lot of the frustration with the Yankees’ current roster is, well, roster fatigue. If LeMahieu returns, there’s an All-Star-caliber bat at every position. The back three of the bullpen are stout. The top two in the rotation are strong, once Luis Severino returns, and there’s plenty of potential behind him.

But good teams rely on February projections. Great teams are proactive in insuring against disaster.

After the Rays dismantled their rotation chasing top prospect rankings and the almighty dollar, they’ve taken a significant step back. Can two plug-and-play pitchers and Michael Wacha really replicate Blake Snell and Charlie Morton, who were the reasons for the World Series season in the first place (plus, that Randy guy)? Unlikely.

The Blue Jays are going to charge hard, but their pitching is a year away from finding enough consistent answers for the rest of baseball behind Hyun-Jin Ryu and possibly Nate Pearson. The Red Sox are building for next year (or 2023), as are the soon-to-be Lindor-less Indians. The Astros proved they can compete in a short series without Justin Verlander, but what about without Michael Brantley and George Springer? And what about over the course of 100+ games? The Oakland A’s are set to lose 12 free agents. There’s massive turnover in the league…except for on the roster of the consensus favorite last spring.

Even though Yankees fans grow more aggravated by the day by a lack of flash and LeMahieu, there’s an opportunity here to fill out the rotation, by trade or low-dollar signing, flush out the bullpen, add platoon bats and bench pieces, and grab the American League by the reins.

Make additions. Maximize the window granted to you by controlling the prime years of Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole. Do it. Don’t go insane, but get better. Go. Go on! Go.

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