Yankees: Two starters who will be affected by trade deadline moves

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Even the angriest and most cynical New York Yankees fans should be pleased with the team’s player haul before the July 30 trade deadline. The club acquired first baseman Anthony Rizzo from the Chicago Cubs and outfielder Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers.

Rizzo and Gallo are smart, outstanding ballplayers, and both bat from the left side (finally!). Additionally, Rizzo, in particular, has excellent leadership skills and has been to the World Series as recently as 2016. He will help in more ways than one.

General manager Brian Cashman also nabbed relief pitchers Joely Rodriguez from the Rangers and Clay Holmes from the Pittsburgh Pirate,s as well as starting pitcher Andrew Heaney from the Los Angeles Angels. At the same time, the Bombers jettisoned relief pitchers Luis Cessa and Justin Wilson, both of whom went to the Cincinnati Reds.

The Cashman haters out there (I know there are many) should realize that he made these deals without giving up any of the team’s most prized prospects. Moreover, he persuaded the Cubs and the Rangers to pay Rizzo’s and Gallo’s 2021 salaries to stay under the luxury tax threshold.

This is why MLB insider Jim Bowden, who has graded every team’s trade transactions, gives the Yanks an “A” for their moves. He argues that Rizzo and Gallo “are offensive game-changers for New York.” Also, both are athletic and substantial defensive upgrades.

But for all the good these moves bring, how will they affect the rest of the roster? In particular, these two starters could be facing significant changes in their roles on the Yanks.

Luke Voit #59 of the New York Yankees (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

Luke Voit’s Yankees Role

First, let’s focus on Luke Voit since he will be directly affected by the Rizzo deal.

Voit, who is in his age-30 season, has produced offensively for the Boys in Pinstripes since he joined the team in 2018. In 148 plate appearances during his first year, he mashed a slash line of .333/.405/.689, including 14 home runs and 33 RBI. Voit banged 21 home runs and 62 RBI in 510 plate appearances in 2019.

Voit topped that during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season when he hit a major league-leading 22 home runs and drove in 52 RBI in just 234 plate appearances while battling plantar fasciitis for most of the season.

Unfortunately, the 2021 season has not been kind to him. Voit has logged three stints on the IL and has only played in 29 games thus far. He has produced only three home runs and 11 RBI.

Cash probably believed that Rizzo represented a significant offensive and defensive upgrade over Voit. Plus, he was affordable. Hence, the Yanks acquired him.

So, where does this leave Voit after he returns from the IL and rehab? On Friday afternoon before the Miami Marlins game, Boone said, “We’ll see. Things change day-to-day all the time and certainly have with us over the last few years. So obviously, we know what we have in a really good player with Luke. We’ll see how the days unfold. But right now, it’s about getting him just back up to speed and getting some game reps under his belt.”

Nevertheless, once Voit is back in playing shape, it will be crazy to take Rizzo out of the starting lineup, given how well he has been playing since joining the Boys from the Bronx. He is crushing the ball as a lefty and contributing on both sides of the diamond. Despite the encouraging words from Boone (and also Cash), the Yanks realize that a substantial upgrade at first base will provide the team a better chance of making the playoffs.

If Stanton continues to play the outfield, Voit could slot into the DH hole in the lineup. Still, it is unlikely that Stanton will play the outfield regularly. Voit also could be employed as a pinch hitter during critical points of a game.

Rizzo will be a free agent after this season, and Voit will remain under team control. At this point, it appears that Tony would be a perfect candidate to stay a Yankee. Given Rizzo’s displeasure with how the Cubs treated the players they traded, he is unlikely to want to re-sign with his old team in 2022.

I expect the Yanks to offer Tony a new, multi-year contract if he continues to play well. Of course, things can still change during the next two months, and no one knows how much money and contract length Rizzo might demand to continue as a Yankee.

Voit’s future is up in the air, especially since DJ LeMahieu (signed to a multi-year contract) will still be available to ably fill in at first base if Tony gets hurt or needs a breather.

Voit is clearly expendable and, if he hits well upon his return from the IL, he could be used to acquire a valuable piece in the Yanks’ 2022 roster puzzle assuming the team signs Rizzo.

Gleyber Torres #25 of the New York Yankees runs the bases during the spring training game against the Washington Nationals at Steinbrenner Field on February 26, 2020 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

Gleyber Torres’ Role With Yankees

Gleyber Torres hit very well during his first two years with the club. In 2018, Torres produced a slash line of .271/.340/.480. The following year, he raked a slash line of .278/.337/.535.

Torres hit 24 home runs and drove in 77 RBI in 2018. He topped that in 2019 with 38 home runs and 90 RBI.

During the abbreviated 2020 season, Torres inherited the shortstop role full-time following the departure of Didi Gregorius. His offense suffered (his batting average sank to .243, and he only hit three home runs and drove in 16 RBI), possibly due to his need to focus on fielding a new position regularly (or the various other complications of a pandemic.

But Torres’ power outage and lackluster hitting have continued in 2021. He has only banged six home runs, driven in 37 RBI, and produced a mediocre slash line of .243/.325/.334.

Further, Torres’ shoddy fielding has been a constant, regardless of whether he has played second base or shortstop. His offensive regression and poor fielding have clearly hurt the team.

Unlike Voit’s situation, the Bombers did not pick up a replacement for Torres before the trading deadline. However, there is the possibility that by adding Rizzo to the infield, the Boys in Pinstripes will have more flexibility in moving the infield chess pieces around.

This could result in less playing time for Torres, depending on how Boone wants to set the table. Rougned Odor could play third base with Gio Urshela at short and LeMahieu at second base. Or, even better, Odor could play second base, and LeMahieu could be slotted at third base with Urshela at short. There now will be less need for LeMahieu to play first.

Moves that were made by other teams also might portend the future for Torres. For some unexplained reason, the Colorado Rockies elected not to trade Trevor Story, their All-Star shortstop. The Colorado shortstop will now be available as a free agent during the offseason, and Cashman can decide whether to pursue him then without relinquishing any assets. Of course, Story would be a significant upgrade at shortstop and would replace Torres at that position. He also will cost a lot.

A trade that did happen and that may potentially affect Torres’ future involved the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Washington Nationals. The Nationals traded RHP Max Scherzer and shortstop Trea Turner from the Nationals for two top prospects and two mid-tier prospects.

Turner will move from shortstop to second base, and Corey Seager, a free agent this offseason, will play shortstop after returning from the IL. Turner becomes a free agent in 2023.

Reading the baseball tea leaves, it appears that the Dodgers will likely let Seager bail during the offseason and replace him with Turner next year. Seager will then be another possible outstanding replacement for Torres for the Yanks to pursue.

While it is unlikely that Torres will improve his fielding during the next two months, he might enhance his offensive stats. If this happens, the Bombers could trade him for a solid pitcher (or a key position player) to augment the starting rotation during the offseason.

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