Via Joel Sherman: The Yankees continue to have Padres third baseman Chase Headley on their radar. San Diego recently wrapped up their organizational meetings and believe they will keep their franchise player even though he is due to become a free agent next offseason. The Padres will listen to offers but they don’t consider New York a good trade partner because of their lack of big league ready young players.
Headley, 29, hit .250/.347/.400 (113 wRC+) with 13 homers in exactly 600 plate appearances this summer. He missed the start of the season after breaking his thumb sliding into third base in Spring Training and was much better in the second half (134 wRC+) than the first (99 wRC+). That makes sense, players tend to perform better as they get further away from hand injuries. Headley was a legitimate MVP candidate just a year ago, when he hit .286/.376/.498 (145 wRC+) with 31 homers and his typically strong defense.
Matt Swartz projects Headley to earn $10M through arbitration in 2014. Even if Alex Rodriguez’s suspension is overturned, the Yankees have an obvious need at third base because they can’t count on A-Rod to stay healthy or play the field everyday. Headley is a switch-hitter with power and strong defense, so he’s a pretty great fit for any team. If the Padres trade him during the season, his new team won’t be able to make him a qualifying offer and he won’t cost a draft pick to sign next winter. That would be the best case for New York outside of prying him loose via trade this winter.