Should the New York Yankees Be Making More Moves Before the Trade Deadline?
July 31, 2012 · Peter Alfano · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
The clock is ticking closer to baseball’s trade deadline, and the question is whether the Yankees should stand pat after acquiring Ichiro Suzuki or try to make another splash or two.
We know about the Steinbrenner family’s desire to bring payroll down to $185 million, a budget most teams would love to have.
But for the Yankees, this represents an austerity movement and is making general manager Brian Cashman a lot more careful about how he spends the Steinbrenners’ money. Nonetheless, the Yankees are an aging team, and while they are cruising to the American League East title, the biggest concern is how they will fare in the postseason.
Trading for Ichiro was a surprise and would have been a coup five years ago. He is a good defensive outfielder who can run and occasionally hit the long ball. It sounds a lot like what the Yankees were hoping to get from Brett Gardner.
Ichiro, however, is in decline and not the difference-maker he was earlier in his career. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Angels went out and traded for Zack Greinke and may have elevated themselves to the role of postseason favorites after a horrible start.
Mike Trout is giving new meaning to the word phenom, and let’s face it, Yankees fans—there’s no one in the minors who can give the Bronx Bombers the lift that Trout did when he was summoned.
The Los Angeles Dodgers, buoyed by new ownership willing to spend like the Yankees used to, acquired Hanley Ramirez and are in the market for a pitcher like Ryan Dempster.
Do the Yankees think that the return of Andy Pettitte and Alex Rodriguez in September is better than anything they can acquire in a trade? With no team breathing down their neck, the Yankees have the luxury of letting their wounded heal.
Still, we can’t imagine George Steinbrenner sitting back and letting potential postseason opponents corner the trade market. George would have been on the phone to Cashman after the Angels got Greinke, demanding how his general manager was going to answer that move.
Well, let’s pretend George was still in charge. What players would Cashman pursue if given the green light?
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