Yankees' Mason Miller trade dreams are more possible than you might think

As the New York Yankees look to bolster their bullpen before the deadline, pursuing San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller would give the franchise championship energy again. It's the kind of high-rolling move that you'd imagine the Los Angeles Dodgers would make, or maybe the Yankees of yesteryear. But the modern Yanks? Not so much.

That's exactly why it's high time for Brian Cashman to dive into this opportunity and change the narrative. It would take a haul to pry Miller and his multiple years of team control away from San Diego, but what is Cashman hugging his top prospects for? The window to win a title is now! Aaron Judge is 34 years old. Gerrit Cole is 35.

The Yankees-Miller trade buzz kicked into high gear on July 14, when The New York Post's Jon Heyman reported that the Yanks "love the idea" of adding Miller. Heyman also revealed that George Lombard Jr. would likely be kept off then table in any trade negotiations. But that's fine — the Yankees could still entice the Padres enough without including Lombard.

Yankees' stable of top pitching prospects is exactly what the Padres need in a potential Mason Miller trade

The Yankees line up quite nicely as a trade partner for the Padres due to New York's collection of elite pitching prospects. Multiple, young quality arms is precisely what San Diego needs as an organization right now. The Padres' farm system is decimated in that realm, and at the big-league level San Diego is probably going to lose Michael King after the season.

Cashman could call up Padres president of baseball operations AJ Preller and say, 'Listen, I have Elmer Rodríguez, Carlos Lagrange, and Ben Hess here. Let's get a deal done.' Would Preller also ask about Will Warren? It's possible, considering how special Miller is.

Again, the Yankees would have to give up a ton of value to get Miller, but that's what happens when you trade for one of baseball's most impactful players. You have to pay top dollar to get luxury items.

The point here is that a trade is plausible! The Yankees have exactly the kind of prospect capital at the top of their farm system that would replenish San Diegos' pipeline in the way that it desperately needs. Miller would step into New York's bullpen and immediately launch the Yankees back into the conversation as a World Series contender (have you looked around the American League lately?).

The time is now for the Yankees to swing big on Mason Miller

Rumors surfaced that the Padres are looking to use Miller as a way to get off Xander Bogaerts' contract and ... would Yankees fans be opposed to that? They would have to offload some salary (in this hypothetical situation, perhaps Ryan McMahon, Trent Grisham, Carlos Rodón?), but it's not out of the question.

Losing a guy like Lagrange would sting, but that's part of operating as a true contender. You have to be willing to give up prospects who might become stars. Lagrange has that sort of potential, but then again, anything can happen between now and later to derail that stardom, such as injuries. Look at how Anthony Volpe's once-assumed future stardom has panned out.

You can't keep protecting the future if you're the Yankees at this point. They've made Jasson Domínguez and Spencer Jones untouchable in recent years ... and for what? Miller is the type of talent and contract situation worth swinging big for. This is a move that a team trying to win a World Series would absolutely make.

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