5 Yankees most likely to be dealt at the trade deadline

Wandy Peralta

Remember when Aaron Boone used Wandy Peralta for one batter in a game on Friday night that he was ostensibly trying to win/send to extras? One pitch. One, solitary pitch. That was weird.

Peralta, a free agent at the end of the season, is making just $3.35 million this season, so dealing him would save New York just over a million. He wouldn't get them under the top tier of the luxury tax by himself, but he'd get them close.

He was trending in a positive direction in his past seven outings following Friday night, totaling five walk-free shutout innings. Control has been the 32-year-old's bugaboo this season, and advanced metrics have long suggested that his 2.29 ERA is due for some regression. Based on his walk rate, Statcast pegs his expected ERA as 4.78. There's no doubt that Boone, Cashman and Co. are watching his peripherals like a ticking time bomb, hoping he can last through the end of the season on a heater -- or maybe just through Aug. 1.

Peralta is a postseason horse and a quirky Yankee icon. Unfortunately, entering free agency, he might be better off elsewhere for the season's final two months, depending on the return package.