3 tempting trade targets the Yankees must avoid overpaying for this winter

If there was anything for the New York Yankees' front office to learn from the Milwaukee Brewers' World Series victory, it's that team-building should never revolve around one or two players (even if those players are MVP types).

In other words, the Yankees aren't going to solve their current problems by spending an absurd amount of prospect capital on one megastar. With that in mind, let's run through a trio of enticing trade targets that the Yankees should avoid this winter.

3 trade targets that the Yankees should avoid going after this offseason

CJ Abrams

Abrams' next contract is going to be massive. He has two years of team control left, but the Yankees wouldn't want to end up cornered into a humongous extension for a player who's this bad defensively.

Abrams' bat is certainly tempting for a Yankees team that lacked offense in the ALDS, but the ultimate price point for this kind of player is too high. The one thought-provoking factor here is whether or not Abrams would be willing to move to the outfield. Doing so would make him a tad more appealing to the Yanks, but he'd still represent a way-too-big investment moving forward, not to mention the package it would requite to get him in the first place.

New York should lean into their commitment to George Lombard Jr. at shortstop and Spencer Jones in the outfield. Though both guys had some issues defensively in 2026, neither figures to end up more error-prone than Abrams.

Hunter Goodman

A right-handed catcher with significant power! Seems like a perfect fit for the Yankees at first glance, but hold on a second. First off, the Colorado Rockies wouldn't have any great reason to trade Goodman unless they were getting a colossal haul in return -- in other words, an inevitable overpay from the team they're doing business with.

Moreover, Goodman's strikeout rate is alarming enough to steer clear of for a Yankees group that's certainly not looking to add more whiff (even if New York's lack-of-contact problem has been exaggerated by some fans).

That's not even to mention that Goodman's career power numbers are somewhat inflated by his playing at Coors Field. He was awesome on the road for much of 2026, but he's still been much more powerful at Coors throughout his career. He's not quite the slugger you think he is, especially not for whatever gargantuan price Colorado would be asking for.

Spencer Torkelson

Torkelson wouldn't be a major overpay from a financial or trade-package standpoint, but he'd be a weird investment given the Yankees' logjam at first base/DH.

The tempting aspect of Torkelson is his right-handed bat, which did heat up considerably at the end of 2026 and reminded everyone of his talent (including the Tigers, who might feel better about keeping him now).

To give any significant prospect capital up for a guy that's only going to come in and clog the infield depth chart situation more would be unwise. Things might shift slightly here if the Yankees end up trading Luis García Jr. in the coming weeks. But ultimately, Ben Rice should be playing first base almost every day in 2027.

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