Yankees: 3 Rockies NYY should plunder after Nolan Arenado trade

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The Rockies are a disaster — more so after trading Nolan Arenado. Who can the Yankees poach?

Brian Cashman made it fairly clear (ok, extremely clear) in his Friday media session that he’s perfectly comfortable entering 2021 with this roster, following the acquisition of Jameson Taillon, jettisoning of Adam Ottavino and short-term signings of Corey Kluber and Darren O’Day.

And that’s…actually pretty great. The Yankees’ starting rotation has enough depth that it can now officially count Deivi Garcia, Clarke Schmidt and Domingo German as insurance instead of No. 4 starters, and the one-for-one replacement in the ‘pen of O’Day for Otto at 1/4 of the cost was excellent work.

But the Yankees could always use more.

More starters with a longer track record of success and a strong injury history. More bullpen arms under the $4 million threshold. More lefty bench bats. More fringe 40-man offensive players with upside, like Mike Tauchman.

Tauchman, specifically, is why the Yankees had to be salivating when they watched the Rockies finally launch Nolan Arenado to St. Louis on Friday night, a disaster in every way for Colorado. They kicked in a huge chunk of salary. They accepted a lesser return because they couldn’t eliminate Arenado’s opt-out. And they ushered in a new era of potentially being a farm system for the rest of baseball, specifically the Bronx Bombers.

So, who will be next in the long and time-honored progression from Denver to the Boogie Down, following Troy Tulowitzki, DJ LeMahieu, Adam Ottavino, and DJ LeMahieu? We could really use some reinforcements — and no, not Trevor Story.

SEATTLE, WA – AUGUST 09: Starting pitcher German Marquez #48 of the Colorado Rockies delivers a pitch during the second inning of a game against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on August, 9, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /

3. German Marquez

Should the Yankees dip back into the high-end pitching market?

German Marquez should be off the table, under normal circumstances.

But remember, there’s basically no longer a team in Colorado anymore. They’re going to have to build from below the ground up. So why not have these conversations?

At the age of 23 in 2018, pitching his home games in the paper-thin air in Denver, Marquez missed bats at an unbelievable rate, whiffing 230 men in 196.0 innings pitched, and posting a 3.77 ERA, a mark that ranks as exceptional under the circumstances. Since that season, he’s remained a reliable arm, leading MLB in innings pitched this past year, and has carried on largely as expected (4.76 ERA and a whiff per inning in 2019, 3.75 mark in ’20).

Marquez will be a free agent after the 2023 season, though there’s a team option on his docket that offseason. Theoretically, the price should be disqualifyingly high, but the Rockies just salary dumped Nolan Arenado to an NL contender, so anything’s possible.

And will Colorado really be contending in any of the next three years? Four? By then, Marquez’s prime will be ending. All of this is very depressing, yet true!

Even assuming a slight discount, Rockies GM Jeff Bridich should still demand Deivi Garcia in this trade, plus another high-octane pitching prospect like Luis Gil. Add the backsliding Miguel Andújar to the package and call it a day?

DENVER, COLORADO – SEPTEMBER 19: Pitcher Daniel Bard #52 of the Colorado Rockies throws in the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field on September 19, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /

2. Daniel Bard

The Yankees deploying ex-Red Sox weapon Daniel Bard would be fun as hell.

This is just a speculative list, right? One in which we can shoot for the stars if we want to?

After Arenado’s departure, though, ask yourself which option is really more likely here. Will the Rockies keep feel-good story Daniel Bard, a 35-year-old reliever providing genuine value for the first time in a decade? Or will they attempt to maximize his two years of control by using him as another asset?

The Rox settled with Bard ahead of the arbitration process for a shade under $3 million ($2.925 mil, in fact), so he fits firmly in the Yankees’ budget, about half the cost of a power arm like Trevor Rosenthal.

Can Bard be fully trusted? Well, of course not. He returned from the absolute bottom after trying to tame an arm gone wild at the minor-league level for nearly a decade, and has only performed in the empty-ballpark season. But as the fifth option in the Yankees’ ‘pen? Yes. Yes, we can do that.

There’s nary a more electric arm who might be on the market, and a “Bard for two back-end 40-man roster guys” trade makes a lot of sense; Alexander Vizcaino, Yoendrys Gomez and Luis Medina are all still hanging out there, as is Ben Heller.

Yes, there’s risk here. And yes, the Rockies will probably want to wait until the league’s needs calcify at the trade deadline. But we haven’t seen Bard’s name mentioned much, and we’re sure the Rockies will forget the redemption narrative soon and get to wheeling and dealing.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA – SEPTEMBER 27: Starting pitcher Kyle Freeland #21 of the Colorado Rockies throws a pitch against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the first inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on September 27, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images) /

1. Kyle Freeland

The Yankees could now get Kyle Freeland at a TRUE discount.

We’ve been advocating for the Yankees to take a chance on Kyle Freeland for a while now.

Marquez? Well, he still might be an unreasonable target even after Arenado’s departure.

But Freeland? Yeah, why not? Why would the Rockies hold onto a regressing mid-rotation option who certainly won’t be around the next time this is a playoff-level roster?

Freeland was the real ace of the 2018 season in which Marquez also starred. He got the Wild Card Game in Chicago. He finished fourth in the Cy Young race. He posted a 2.85 ERA in his age-25 season for his hometown team. Since then? A 6.75 ERA in his crash-to-earth 2019 season, followed by a solid return to form with a 4.33 ERA in the 60-game campaign.

Freeland’s ceiling is far lower than it was when he wrapped up 2018, but remember, the Yankees do have enough rotation now. They’re simply adding padding at this point. And if you believe that the true Freeland is somewhere between 2018 and ’19 (otherwise known as his 2020 form, which you probably didn’t watch), he’s a worthwhile bargain who the Rockies have no reason to hold onto through 2023.

Alexander Vizcaino and Mike Ford for Freeland? Clear those roster spots, Hal. We’ve got another wild card to add to the rotation.

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - SEPTEMBER 26: Luis Castillo #58 of the Cincinnati Reds pitches against the Minnesota Twins on September 26, 2020 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Brace Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images)

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