Getty Mason Miller of the Oakland Athletics could be a Yankees trade target.
Losers of 14 of their last 18 games heading into play on July 6, the New York Yankees need help just about everywhere. With the trade deadline approaching, FOX’s Ken Rosenthal reports they will target bullpen help first.
In an appearance on FS1 on Saturday morning, Rosenthal laid out New York’s priorities.
What are the Yankees plans before the trade deadline?
@Ken_Rosenthal says New York will be targeting bullpen help and possibly an infielder ⬇️
“The first thing’s going to be their bullpen,” he said. “It was really good in the first 6-8 weeks, but it was a little bit of smoke and mirrors. There’s not enough swing-and-miss in that bullpen. We’ve talked about this. So, they, like every other contender, will be targeting relievers.”
The numbers back up Rosenthal’s “smoke and mirrors” point. Through June 15, the Yankees had the third-best bullpen ERA in baseball (3.17), but ranked 19th in strikeouts per nine innings (8.56). That left them with a FIP of 3.80 (13th) and expected FIP of 4.19 (21st).
It all indicates that the Yankees’ bullpen wasn’t as good as it appeared. At the same time, it’s hard to imagine their bullpen is as bad as it has appeared since June 15 (5.48 ERA, 29th in baseball). Still, the strikeouts per nine have held relatively steady (8.74).
With Clay Holmes in the middle of a horrid stretch (10.80 ERA since June 13), Caleb Ferguson being largely ineffective, and injuries taking their usual toll, not even the back-end of the bullpen has been strong.
Potential Yankees Trade Deadline Targets
If there’s a relief pitcher on the market, someone has connected them to the Yankees, either through reporting or speculation.
But as Rosenthal said, the Yankees need more swing-and-miss in their bullpen. That could make Oakland Athletics reliever Mason Miller an ideal candidate if New York can put together a package to land him.
Miller is in his first full MLB season, pitching to a 2.39 ERA over 37.2 innings. He’s also averaging 15.8 strikeouts per nine innings. The problem is he doesn’t exactly qualify as the type of guy a non-contending team would want to offload with two more pre-arbitration years. Any package for Miller, who won’t reach free agency until 2029, would have to be an apparent overpay.
If they can’t land Miller, the Yankees could have interest in Michael Kopech. His numbers aren’t quite as sexy, but he strikes guys out (12.3/9). He also hasn’t shown over his last two seasons that his extra year of team control will be worth much additional value.
Tanner Scott is the other big name, and he comes with the added bonus of being left-handed. He doesn’t strike out as many but is giving up fewer hits than at any point in his career. Lefty batters are hitting just .088 off him and righties don’t fare much better (.167).
Rosenthal Says the Yankees Could Also Target Infield Help
The Yankees are looking for more than just bullpen help. Other than Anthony Volpe, New York has failed to get consistent production from anyone in the infield. To make matters worse, DJ LeMahieu and Gleyber Torres both may be playing hurt (and have been ineffective) while Anthony Rizzo remains on the Injured List.
“Right now, a rookie, Ben Rice is probably their best infielder,” Rosenthal said. “They’ve got questions at second with Torres, questions at third with LeMahieu. So, they could be looking for someone in that category as well. I know they’re waiting for Jon Berti, but at the same time, he’s been hurt, he’s not a major player. They need more offense and maybe in the infield they can get it.”
Berti, who was productive in limited time this season, is still weeks away anyway. The Yankees expect him to start taking live at bats shortly after the All-Star break, which would put him on track to return around the trade deadline.
They’ll need more. Luis Rengifo is among the best middle infielders available, but the Angels put him on the Injured List on Friday with a wrist injury. Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. could both move from Toronto, but the Blue Jays will have a huge asking price for them that would probably grow even more absurd if they were to deal him to a division rival.
Andrew Vaughn could be an answer at first base if the Yankees don’t want to lean on Rice. Or, the Bombers can swing bigger and look at Alex Bregman or Ryan McMahon.