BBB Writers on the Yankee Trade Deadline

With the trade deadline coming and going, one of the most exciting times of the baseball season has passed. Obviously, there are differing opinions on the Yankees trade deadline activity (or lack thereof), and that is also evident internally within the Bronx Bomber Blogger writers. So, we decided we’d share a few opinions that some of our writers here have. You’ll see a paragraph or more opinionated evaluation with whose opinion it was below the paragraph. Enjoy!

Allow me to begin by saying that I love the Dustin Ackley deal. I know his numbers aren’t up to par, but I promise you guys he’s a much better player than the stats indicate (READ MORE HERE). However, I was fairly disappointed that the Yankees came up empty at the trade deadline aside from Ackley. I would've loved to get a middle infielder like Martin Prado, Brandon Phillips, or someone else for depth, but hopefully Ackley can adjust to playing more second base again. I fully expected to get a pitcher, whether it starter or a reliever. I was hoping to get one of the following: Mike Leake, Craig Kimbrel, Aroldis Chapman, Carter Capps or even…David Price.

With that said, keeping the “Big 4” prospects in Luis Severino, Aaron Judge, Jorge Mateo and Greg Bird will hopefully pay big dividends in the future. Even though the Yankees didn’t make a splash with another team, the Yanks made a great move internally in calling up top prospect Luis Severino. My hope is that we stay healthy in getting to October and we all know that anything can happen in the postseason!

-Chad Raines (@Chad_Rain)

The greatest trade deadline move Brian Cashman could have made was not making one at all. The fact that other teams insisted on including our top prospects in any trade talks only validsates how truly valuable they are. Stay tuned for very special things that will happen within the Yankees organization. It was already announced that Luis Severino’s next start will be in the Majors and there is no doubt that it will be highly anticipated.

-Danny Valentine (@DannyV128)

The Yankees dropped the ball hard by not making a move other than the Dustin Ackley trade. Failing to address a rotation in which every pitcher has a question mark is a road to disaster. The team waited too long and all impact arms were taken. A deal for Craig Kimbrel certainly would’ve helped the bullpen, but apparently San Diego pulled out even after New York offered what the Padres wanted. This team may make the playoffs, but there’s no way it will be competitive with this rotation. It’s always wiser to trade unproven talent in prospects for proven big league talent.

-Nick Scott (@TeixeiraFanClub)

Sometimes it's the moves you don't make that turn out the best. With the high prospect cost for players this trade deadline I believe the Yankees were right to stand pat and let their prospects work for them. The San Francisco Giants gave up their 3rd best prospect (Keury Mella) to acquire Mike Leake who at his absolute best could be a borderline number 2 and I might be being generous in that assessment. Looking into Craig Kimbrel and Aroldis Chapman seemed like they were reactionary calls to the amazing trade deadline the Toronto Blue Jays had. There is no doubt that Kimbrel or Chapman would have improved the team but they would have been a luxury for an already strong component of the team.

With affordable quality starting pitching scarce I think the best move the Yankees could have made (and the one they are making) is turning to Luis Severino. While he now steps in for an injured Michael Pineda he could easily displace C.C. Sabathia or Ivan Nova when Pineda returns. Additionally on the prospect front we may see contributions Rob Refsnyder and Bryan Mitchell. Only acquiring Dustin Ackley may be a tough pill to swallow while watching the Blue Jays land David Price and Troy Tulowitzki in the end the Yankees will be better served not paying the premium price that this trade deadline demanded. Believe in the plan!

-Eliot Podgorsky (@EliotRants)

Brian Cashman failed us at the deadline. While our potent offense and dominant bullpen will be real assets come October, I believe the starting rotation will be the ultimate downfall. Without one dependable starter, we will be toast in a short series. Hopefully Pineda comes back healthy and returns to his dominant form, hopefully Tanaka gets over his inconsistencies and becomes a true number 1 starter, hopefully Eovaldi and Nova can step up to the challenge, hopefully CC can find a time machine and bring us back to 2009, and hopefully Severino is an absolute stud. If even two of these are answered in the affirmative then we can be dangerous come October. Unfortunately, I believe Cashman’s inability to improve the roster cost us a great opportunity at a World Championship. Hopefully I’m wrong, but only time will tell. Read my full thoughts HERE.

-Steven Eareckson (@SEareckson)

As we all know by now, the Yankees only made one trade at the July 31^st non-waiver deadline. The one trade was acquiring Dustin Ackley from the Seattle Mariners for two minor league players. Many Yankee fans are upset with Brian Cashman’s lack of activity this past week. Not only did Michael Pineda go down with an injury, but Cashman didn’t make any moves to add depth to a weak starting rotation. 

However, I do not think his lack of activity is a bad thing. The Yankees have a few top prospects almost ready to break through to the big league club in Aaron Judge, Luis Severino, Greg Bird, and Rob Refsnyder. They also have a few studs at AA but are a few years away. So Brian Cashman believes that they Yankees are better off with the homegrown guys than shipping them out for major league players. I am a big supporter of what Cashman has done so far this year and how he handled the deadline. The Yankees are in 1^st place in the AL East by 6 games and have one of the leagues best offenses. Now by not making moves, they keep their young up and coming stars and still have a legitimate chance to make a run at it all. Lastly, for the fans that so wanted a trade for a pitcher, teams can still make trades as long as the player passes through waivers. So, the Yankees might actually be able to add another big league arm such as James Shields or someone with a larger contract. 

Remember back a few years ago Boston and Los Angeles made a big August trade involving Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, and Adrian Gonzalez. Might the Yankees do the same with the Padres? That remains uncertain, but in the meantime enjoy this Yankee squad the way it is because it’s a fun group of guys to watch.

-Jesse Garcia (@jessegarcia975)

The Yankees arrived at the deadine in need of starting pitching and an infielder who could hit above .200. in regard to the Ackley trade, I am optimistic because he’s versatile. He can play all three outfield positions, first base and second base. Also, he played at a pitcher-friendly Safeco Field so playing in hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium should help his hitting.

As for starting pitching, the Yankees did not make any moves that disappointed me havily. The Yankee rotation is completely filled with question marks. Nathan Eovaldi is still just coming around, Masahiro Tanaka is pitching with a partial torn UCL, CC Sabathia is terrible, Michael Pineda is out 4-8 weeks, and Ivan Nova is inconsistent. The Yankees desperately needed a reliable starting pitcher and could not find one. The Yankees will need starting pitching in the playoffs and cannot rely only on its offense, so this will be a major issue for New York come postseason time.

-Bryan Peng (@BPeng1111)

I had mixed feelings about how the Trade Deadline ended. I'm glad that Cashman held on to our top prospects, but I feel like Cashman could've been a little more productive in bringing in another starter or lockdown reliever. Our offense may be good enough to carry us to the playoffs, but we can't rely on them to put up against the best pitching in the postseason. With how shaky our rotation is I would've liked to see us get another reliable starter or another good reliever to shorten the games.

-Julian Bussells (@JuneYank6)

I was pretty happy with what the Yankees did (or didn't do) for the 2015 trade deadline. They traded for Dustin Ackley, who I believe will be good at Yankee stadium and didn't lose anybody that would make too big of an impact. Even though they didn't get a big name pitcher like Price, or Cueto, I was still happy with it, because most likely it would have costed at least a couple top prospects which I would not have been willing to give up. Mike Leake was also an option, but I believe that he is only an average starter and wouldn't be worth it to trade for this year, even with Pineda down, Tanaka and Nova injury prone, and CC as bad as he is.
-Greg Wilson (@GregWlsn13)

Well folks, there you have it! We’re lucky enough to be blessed with a myriad number of opinions here at the BBB. We simply had our debates privately in our writer group message but again, having the multiple opinions is always nice. I think that’s what makes our site unique. Remember to follow all our writers by simply clicking their @ in the article which will take you to their twitter page and follow our account’s twitter @BronxBomberBlog.