SPANISH HARLEM, NY – The New York Yankees are back to being buyers this season. The team acquired Todd Frazier, David Robertson and Tommy Kahnle from the Chicago White Sox for Blake Rutherford, Ian Clarkin, Tito Polo & Tyler Clippard. Many fans got the news on Tuesday that trade talks were brewing via social media so something was expected. I will look into what this means for the Yankees… now and in the future.
Today the Yankees may have the best bullpen in all of Baseball, as they added two guys in David Robertson (Former Closer of the Yankees) and Tommy Kahlne (Former Prospect of the Yankees), who are known has hard throwers that can rack up a lot of strikeouts. Without decimating their farm system, Brian Cashman made the correct decision to shorten games with a great bullpen. The Kansas City Royals rode their bullpen to a World Series against the New York Mets (BURN!) in 2015 and the Yankees look to duplicate that same model. Todd Frazier will add some much needed pop to the corner infield positions and will help in the clubhouse as a veteran presence. All in all, the Yankees get what they want without having to badly deplete their depth and in my book that’s a win win!
I was one that didn’t believe the organization should trade prospects but develop them so they can contribute and become the core of this team for years to come. In many ways that option still remains since the best one traded was the team’s first round pick from a year ago, Blake Rutherford, who at the moment is playing in High-A ball. No prospect of recent significance was given to the White Sox while many of the players that have the potential to make the roster the next two seasons remain pretty much intact. Gleyber Torres and Clint Frazier were names that were thrown around by the media as possible trade chips but the Yanks showed great restraint in keeping the players they wanted and trading players that you can consider to be of surplus. What makes this trade even more surprising is that the team was able to keep other highly touted players like Miguel Andujar, Dustin Fowler and Justus Sheffield yet still get the exact players they wanted back. Did the Yankees give up a lot… sure but at this point some young stars will be traded because there is only so much room on the 40-man roster. Eventually you will have to make some sacrifices to get back players you feel will help you win.
The future is still bright for this team and that’s important for a franchise that wants to rebuild but also contend for years to come. Robertson will be here for the next two seasons at the very least while Kahlne is under team control until 2020. Todd Frazier will be a free agent at the end of the season and could be a candidate to replace Chase Headley if the team thinks he fits into their long term plans. Somehow the Yankees were able to make their team better today and keep most of the prospects that are valued highly. They still have players that other teams want so anything possible but today the Yankees come out on the other side of this trade overjoyed with what they accomplished, now and for the future.
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