The trade deadline has come and gone, and once again, Brian Cashman and the Yankees stay quiet. Many people expected the Yankees to pick up some help for their rotation and bullpen, but Cashman was not willing to pay the price. Mike Clevenger, being the top pitcher on the market, was bound to have a high asking price, and the Yankees had the depth to pay that price. But the Indians knew that, and in Cashman’s eyes, they were asking too much. With the likes of Clint Frazier, who is having an outstanding season filling in for an injured Judge, and Deivi Garcia, who threw six brilliant innings just the night before the deadline in his MLB debut, I can see why Cashman was hesitant to pull the trigger.
Many fans think the pitching depth would have been worth the price, but Cashman has always been far-sighted. The other potential difference maker was Lance Lynn, who spent some time with the Yankees in the 2018-2019 season. While he is having a brilliant year with a 1.93 ERA, the Rangers wanted the Yankees two top pitching prospects, Garcia and Schmidt, in return. Cashman made the right call here. He did not want to sacrifice the bright future of these two young prospects for a guy who only has one extra year of control.
Bullpen arms were another potential target. With Tommy Kahnle out for the season (Tommy John), and the rest of the bullpen struggling to find a rhythm, the help of another top-end reliever would have been welcomed with open arms. Unfortunately, Cashman was unable to find a good match for that need. While they did not get the added help at the deadline, Britton, who was on the IL with a strained hamstring, has been activated and seems to be back on track. Will that be enough to get the bullpen back on track? Only time will tell.
The Yankee pitching staff could have used the boost, but maybe the trade that wasn’t made was the best trade that could have been made. After his brilliant debut against the Mets, and with James Paxton on the IL with elbow problems, you can expect Deivi Garcia will be back in the rotation for his next start. While Clarke Schmidt is not currently on the 40-man roster, the Yankees have not ruled out bringing him up this year. Yes, they would love to leave him off so that they have an extra year of control before he is eligible for free agency, but if their rotation woes continue, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Schmidt toe the slab this year.
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