Yankees: Could latest Rockies news force team’s hand with Gleyber Torres?

The man who built it up and tore it all down is out of town. The Colorado Rockies announced on Monday that general manager Jeff Bridich has resigned.

Did he willingly give up his post? Was he forced into it by ownership? We’ll probably never know, but what we do know is that there’s a lot of unfinished business to take care of in Denver.

And some of it could have implications for the New York Yankees, depending on what happens at the shortstop position.

Though Gleyber Torres has looked more comfortable on defense as the weeks have gone by, his bat has yet to return to form. How long will the Yankees be willing to wait?

That’s where the connection with Rockies star Trevor Story comes in. Before leaving Colorado, Bridich orchestrated one of the worst trades in MLB history, shipping Nolan Arenado AND $50 million to the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for a package of underwhelming prospects.

For some reason, he held on to Story, who is in a contract year. Could that now swiftly change under new management?

Could the Rockies and Yankees reignite Trevor Story trade talks?

For whatever reason, Bridich didn’t part with the asset that could have netted him the best return. Though once upon a time Arenado still could’ve gotten the franchise unthinkable value, the Rockies allowed the relationship to deteriorate publicly, which all but officially eliminated their leverage (especially since Arenado had an opt-out clause in his contract).

But now the value clock is ticking on Story. Each day he remains on the Rockies, his price tag in trade talks slowly diminishes because the potential recipient would be guaranteed fewer games with the star slugger.

The “decision” to make on Story is a simple one: does he get traded in the immediate future or at the non-waiver deadline? Many can safely assume he’s not re-upping with the organization that left him surrounded by spare parts to begin the 2021 campaign.

Let’s say the new GM/president opts for the former and moves Story in the immediate future to maximize his return. Does that automatically force the Yankees’ hand with Torres?

Trust us, we’d much rather just have Torres be the shortstop of the future for the Yankees and never have to deal with hypothetical/speculative conversations like this, but we can’t control the narrative. Already in 2021, Torres has had basic defensive lapses (further concerns dating back to 2020), was called out for not hustling on a check-swing grounder, and is slashing .213/.306/.240 in 20 games. In his last 245 regular-season plate appearances, he has three home runs and 18 RBI.

If the defense isn’t pristine, that offense is beyond unacceptable. On the other hand, if his offense is like it was in 2018 and 2019, then the team would likely be able to deal with the booted routine plays from time to time. Sadly, though Torres is beginning to settle in on defense, his performance on both sides of the ball overall is certainly not up to par, and it’s fairly palpable that the Yankees aren’t willing to continue waiting — though we could be wrong.

If the Rockies’ timetable to trade Story changes drastically and the Yankees feel like they need to make a move to improve their contender status, could we see Brian Cashman making a blockbuster months before he was expected to even consider one?

MLB insider proposes insane Yankees-Rockies Trevor Story trade

MLB insider Jim Bowden proposed a pretty wild trade between the New York Yankees and Colorado Rockies involving Trevor Story.