Yankees are already in trouble after early Padres trade rumor surfaces

If we're making our New York Yankees trade deadline shopping list now, items on the agenda would be a right-handed hitting catcher, a potential replacement for Ryan McMahon at third base, and a couple of high-leverage relievers. The latter, of course, would be at the top.

The bullpen has questions across the board. The composition makes little sense, with Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn both filling the long man role. Aaron Boone has abused the relievers he trusts the most, making burnout a real concern. The supposed back-end duo of Camilo Doval and David Bednar has been incredibly shaky.

Scouring the market for some help makes a ton of sense, but the Yankees won't be alone in their quest. In fact, another team has made it known that their top priority will be importing new relievers, and the fact that the club in question is the San Diego Padres should have Yankees fans feeling queasy.

Yankees Rumors: Padres seeking relief help is bad for Brian Cashman

The Yankees should've learned a lesson from the Padres last trade deadline. Brian Cashman refused to go after the top of the market relief options, instead preferring second-tier relievers with additional years of control.

Padres general manager AJ Preller took a different tack. Despite having an extremely thin farm system, he went the blockbuster route. The Padres gave up then-No. 3 overall prospect Leo De Vries (now the second-ranked prospect) to get Miller. He also went out and got J.P. Sears, Ryan O'Hearn, Ramon Laureano, and Nestor Cortes, sending out nearly a dozen prospects in the process.

Meanwhile, the Yankees reportedly would only trade Spencer Jones, their No. 6 prospect and a player outside of the Top-100, for Paul Skenes and no one else. Simply put, Cashman doesn't have the stomach to swing for the fences like Preller.

The Padres' statement of intent has folks already connecting the dots. Two names who could potentially catch Preller's eye are Boston Red Sox closer and Yankees' disgrace Aroldis Chapman, and Houston Astros closer Josh Hader.

Hader has some risk. He ended the 2025 season on the IL with a left shoulder capsule strain and has been on the IL all season with biceps tendinitis. He's making $19 million this year and is owed another $38 million for the next two seasons. However, he also has a long track record of dominance, and is a player that Preller has acquired once before.

If the Yankees get into a bidding war with the Padres, there's little chance that Cashman will outbid Preller. That will likely lead to the Yankees shopping for mid-tier options once again, and likely once again coming up short. Watching the bullpen become a chronic issue has been a severe source of annoyance for fans, and this likely means the frustration will continue.

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