Possible Yankees' trade reunion with former pitcher dead after Tommy John diagnosis

As of right now, the New York Yankees don't need another starting pitcher before Opening Day, but an additional certainly wouldn't hurt after all that's happened. It won't be easy to make up the ground lost by Gerrit Cole being out for the year and Luis Gil likely missing the entire first half.

Clarke Schmidt also isn't healthy, which further clouds the picture. It's nice that Will Warren and Carlos Carrasco have stepped up, but that's hardly a formula for success when you look at a 162-game grind. So what if the Yankees went out and reunited with a former pitcher?

Well, that was a possibility before Tuesday afternoon's news drop. Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Jorgan Montgomery, who was reportedly available via trade, is set to undergo Tommy John surgery (again) and miss the entire 2025 season.

It's been a sad fall from grace for Monty, who New York callously traded during the 2022 deadline in a blindside deal with the St. Louis Cardinals. Monty had a really bad 2024 showing and was called out by the D-backs' owner after the season. He wasn't expected to begin the year in the rotation.

According to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, the team was looking for a trade suitor to take on $13 million of the $22.5 million owed to Montgomery, which wasn't a bad deal when you considered his entire body of work. It was just the recent sample size that scared so many off.

Former Yankees lefty Jordan Montgomery to undergo Tommy John surgery

But apparently there was more at play. Montgomery signed late last offseason, didn't get a proper spring training, and then struggled after a laborious 2023. That year, he helped lead the Texas Rangers to a World Series victory.

Montgomery previously underwent Tommy John surgery during his time with the Yankees back in 2018. That year, he only made six starts, and returned for just two outings in 2019. That came right after a promising rookie season where he finished sixth in the ROTY voting and helped the Bombers earn a Wild Card berth.

While a trade reunion here was certainly possible, it wasn't exactly likely. Montgomery definitely felt disrespected after that 2022 trade, and the Yankees aren't all that keen on inheriting salary at the moment. It was, however, loosely floated, given the Yankees' injuries and a necessary change of scenery for Montgomery.

Yankees fans are undoubtedly sending their best to the former fourth-round draft pick, whose stay in New York should've lasted longer than it did.