Mason Miller dominance should convince Brian Cashman to change Yankees' trade approach

When the New York Yankees went shopping at the 2025 trade deadline to fix their ailing bullpen, they were targeting multiple relievers. That came with a caveat, however, as Joel Sherman reported just two days before the deadline that they weren't expected to be "shopping at the top of the market." Sherman wasn't wrong. Instead of going after the top option in Mason Miller, or everyone's favorite consolation prize in Jhoan Duran, Brian Cashman gave us David Bednar, Camilo Doval, and Jake Bird.

That kind of thinking has become the long-time executive's modus operandi at the deadline in recent years. Rather than package a couple of blue-chip prospects in exchange for a true superstar, he has liberally doled out prospect packages filled with youngsters in the No. 10 to No. 25 spots in the rankings in exchange for guys he believes are undervalued, have upside, and/or possess a generous amount of team control.

The wisdom is that these mid-tier prospects aren't high-potential youngsters, especially when they come from a shallow system like New York's. The flip side to that argument is that the system is so shallow because the club keeps giving away quality depth in these trades. In many cases, like the Doval deal, we can look back and clearly see they made a mistake.

That brings us back to the gem of last year's deadline, a player who would have filled a major hole for the Yankees, in Miller. The Padres paid a high price to acquire him, including MLB Pipeline's No. 3 overall prospect in Leo De Vries. While San Diego might not have envisioned this kind of historic run from the flamethrower, the type where he'll rack up four strikeouts in an inning to secure a save just because, they knew the type of impact he could make.

The Yankees, on the other hand, acquired their three new arms banking on the team control they possessed, helping to stabilize the 2026 bullpen in addition to righting the ship in 2025, but now are staring down the possibility of having to trade for three new high-leverage relievers come July.

Here's how Yankees, Brian Cashman should change trade deadline strategy

While they've never truly come out and said it, youngsters like George Lombard Jr., Carlos Lagrange, Elmer Rodriguez, and Spencer Jones have more or less been untouchable. Each one of that quartet has tantalized us with their potential at some point in the not-so-distant past, and all four continue to fuel hopes for the future.

But they haven't proven anything yet. As we look at the team and consider where upgrades might be needed, we're reminded that before Lombard Jr. and company were rocketing towards the moon, guys like Anthony Volpe and Austin Wells were doing the same. The hit rate, even on the most highly-regarded prospects, is still incredibly low.

The Yankees want to win World Series rings, allegedly, and haven't reached that mountaintop for 17 years. It's time to stop pretending that having one foot in the present and one in the future is the best strategy, when clearly, it hasn't paid off.

That doesn't mean give away your high-end talent for non-worthy players. At times, the market gets crazy. Just look at the prices paid for mediocre starting pitchers with years of team control over the offseason. We're grateful that the Chicago Cubs saved the Yankees from giving up a haul of prized prospects for Edward Cabrera, for example.

But when a player of Miller's caliber is on the table and aligns with one of New York's greatest needs, the time for untouchable lists should be over. If the Yankees had hypothetically traded for him and then also gone out and done the mid-level prospect package for David Bednar, we'd be talking about this bullpen being among the most dominant in the league, as opposed to sitting here waiting for the wheels to fall off.

The Yankees have a long history of hugging top prospects until their value turns to dust. It's a problem, given the organization's aspirations and the financial resources available to replenish talent and depth. That doesn't mean give away their most promising chips without a care in the world. But it does mean that Cashman needs to step up and do what it takes to land true difference makers like Miller, even at the sky-high cost.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow