The Yankees’ Wishlist
Jon Heyman recently posted a tweet that came across as fairly obvious, yet established what everyone was thinking as fact. The Yankees are thinking big in the pitching market:
Yankees —aka the Savages — would still like 1 starter and 1-2 relievers. They are high on Bauer, Ray and Syndergaard (who’s unlikely to be traded, especially to them). MadBum (moving up on all lists) and Stroman are also of interest.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 19, 2019
Robbie Ray, Noah Syndergaard, Trevor Bauer. This reads more like an All-Star roster than a trade deadline shopping list. However, a wishlist is called that for a reason. It is not an expectation list or a projection list, it is a list of players that would make the perfect fit to put them over the top.
Heyman also reports that Bumgarner is moving up the ranks, towards the “wishes” portion. However, SNY’s Andy Martino is reporting that even though the Yankees might want the towering lefty, he might not be for sale. The Giants will listen at this point, yet they are not really engaging in these discussions.
That begs the question if the Giants are not selling off expiring assets, such as Bumgarner, why would the Diamondbacks with an extra year of control on Robbie Ray. Not to mention that Ray is inherently more valuable, especially with the Yankees coveting him so deeply. Ray is a manufacturer of strikeouts and while that may come at the cost of overall control, it does make him a pitcher that can prosper in October.
The Diamondbacks are only one game behind the Philadelphia Phillies for the second Wild Card slot and two games behind the Washington Nationals from hosting the NL wild-card game. Why would they throw that away when the Giants- a game behind them with a much less valuable asset in Bumgarner- refuse to?
Dbacks GM Mike Hazan holds all of the leverage at the moment and will not make a deal unless the Yankees significantly overpay.
The standing is very much the same with Bauer and the Indians. The Tribe desire an MLB-ready position player, preferably an outfielder. That description pretty solidly matches former Indians top prospect and current Yankee Clint Frazier.
The Yankees run the risk of paying severely or letting the top asset on the market- in Bauer- go right to their direct competition. Everyone anticipates a Yankees-Astros ALCS and Bauer proceeding Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole seems quite menacing. It would massively swing the balance of that series.
Kyle Tucker is the Astros equivalent of Frazier and the deeper Astros system would give them the upper hand in this pursuit. Therefore, the Yankees must once again overpay to have their wish to become a reality.
Syndergaard- as Heyman notes- is very, very unlikely to move to the Bronx, the Mets are unlikely to do so and the Yankees are not likely to overpay for it.