Yankees Rumors: Tarik Skubal trade buzz could actually solve major NYY issue

If anything has become clear at this point, it's that the New York Yankees' starting rotation is the club's greatest strength this season. The unit has a 2.98 ERA through May 27, good for second in baseball. So when it comes to the trade deadline, adding a starter is basically the last thing Brian Cashman needs to be considering.

But what if the starter we're talking about adding isn't just any starter? What if it's arguably the best starting pitcher in the game, in Tarik Skubal? The Yankees reportedly investigated this possibility over the offseason and were laughed off the phone. Things might be very different now.

The Tigers are 22-35 and in last place in the AL Central. Detroit has been walloped by injuries, including one to Skubal that is similar to what Carlos Rodón suffered from last year and underwent surgery for over the offseason. Skubal, however, underwent an innovative new procedure to deal with the loose bodies in his elbow, which drastically reduced his recovery timeline.

It's still early, but executives around the league are beginning to believe that, as long as things hold steady, the Tigers will be more willing to deal their ace at the deadline than they were over the offseason, and the Yankees are rumored to be one of the favorites to land him.

The stars are beginning to align for New York to swing this blockbuster. But the question is: why would they do this? The rotation isn't a need, while the bullpen desperately needs reinforcements. The answer is creative problem-solving.

Yankees could creatively solve bullpen woes by building super-rotation via Tarik Skubal trade

Believe it or not, as good as the Yankees' rotation has been, we still haven't seen them at full strength. Gerrit Cole's first two starts back have been nothing short of astonishing in their dominance. Of course, they've come in the wake of Max Fried's injury as the two stars still have yet to be healthy at the same time.

At some point, the two co-aces will share the stage as the Yankees imagined, though they both now might come behind Cam Schlitter in the pecking order. Add Skubal to the mix, and the level of starting pitching supremacy New York would have would be absolutely mind-blowing.

A rotation of Schlittler, Skubal, Cole, Fried, and Rodón would be overwhelming, but technically possible. Should that happen, Ryan Weathers and Will Warren would then be booted from the unit.

In turn, that would mean that the pair of surprising 26-year-olds would be added to the bullpen mix. We've always thought that Weathers' electric stuff would play up there, and his limited exposure to high-innings workloads makes him an ideal candidate to make the shift. Warren, too, could be a beast in relief in the right situations.

That pair might be more of a sure thing than any reliever the Yankees can grab at the deadline (within Brian Cashman's price range). Even with moving those two young starters to the 'pen, it wouldn't preclude the Yankees from making another move to grab an established high-leverage reliever as well.

Then there's Clarke Schmidt's looming return, which could see him deployed as a bullpen weapon come September. You can also dream about Carlos Lagrange channelling his inner Dellin Betances for the stretch run.

It would take a massive splash to land Skubal (and the injury gods smiling upon the Yankees), but theoretically, a move for the ace left-hander could completely overhaul New York's fragile bullpen without the need to make a single relief addition.

Sometimes, the best way to eliminate a weakness is to embrace a strength, and those kinds of possibilities are what a Tarik Skubal trade could open up for the Yankees.

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