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Game 127: Sabathia Returns

August 24, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

Welcome back, CC Sabathia. Sabathia returns from the disabled list after the minimum ten days — well, eleven days because yesterday was an off-day — after dealing with some knee inflammation. It’s going to happen from time to time. The good news is Sabathia only missed one start and is good to go tonight, in the series opener in Baltimore. He returns just in time for Players’ Weekend.

The Yankees and Orioles are playing four games in three days this weekend. Fact No. 1: The Yankees are 46-22 against sub-.500 teams this year, the fifth best record in baseball. Fact No. 2: The Yankees are 6-6 against the sorry excuse of a baseball team the Orioles have fielded this season. Annoying. Please treat the team on pace for 115 losses like a team on pace for 115 losses. Here are the lineups:

New York Yankees
1. LF Brett Gardner
2. DH Giancarlo Stanton
3. CF Aaron Hicks
4. 3B Miguel Andujar
5. RF Neil Walker
6. SS Gleyber Torres
7. 1B Luke Voit
8. C Austin Romine
9. 2B Ronald Torreyes

LHP CC Sabathia

Baltimore Orioles
1. CF Cedric Mullins
2. 2B Jonathan Villar
3. RF Adam Jones
4. DH Trey Mancini
5. 1B Chris Davis
6. SS Tim Beckham
7. 3B Renato Nunez
8. LF John Andreoli
9. C Austin Wynns

RHP Alex Cobb

The internet tells me it is warm and not overly humid in Baltimore, and the sky is clear. Should be a nice night for a ballgame. First pitch is schedule for 7:05pm ET and you can watch on YES. Enjoy.

Injury Updates: Didi Gregorius (heel) has started throwing and could begin swinging a bat early next week. He says the swelling has done down significantly … Aroldis Chapman (knee) received a platelet-rich plasma injection and will be reevaluated in two weeks … Aaron Judge (wrist) still isn’t ready to start swinging a bat. They’re waiting until he is completely pain-free … Gary Sanchez (groin) did not start his rehab assignment today as expected, and instead went through more workouts on a side field. He is going to DH in a rookie ball game tomorrow, then join Triple-A Scranton on Monday … Clint Frazier (post-concussion migraines) could return in September but it is “too early to tell,” according to Aaron Boone. Poor Clint.

Roster Moves: Chance Adams was sent down following Wednesday’s game to clear a roster spot for Sabathia, the Yankees announced. No surprise there … Chris Rabago, who the Yankees claimed off waivers from the Rockies earlier this week, has cleared outright waivers, according to the Yankees. The light-hitting catcher remains in the organization as a non-40-man roster player. He’s in Double-A. The Yankees now have one open 40-man spot.

Rotation Update: J.A. Happ will start the day game and Sonny Gray will start the night game during tomorrow’s doubleheader. The Yankees haven’t said anything, but with Gray making the start, I’d bet on Luis Cessa coming up as the 26th man to be the long reliever.

Previewing the Yankees’ crop of potential September call-ups

August 23, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

In one week and two days all 30 MLB teams will be able to expand their active roster from 25 players to 40 players. Most teams wind up carrying 30-35 players in September. September call-ups have become somewhat controversial but I am 100% for them. I explained why a few years ago. It seems likely the rules will change at some point in the future. Right now, the rules are what they are, and teams can have 40 active players on their roster as of next Saturday.

In recent years the Yankees have been a very aggressive September call-up team. They tend to call up lots of players and they call them up early. Some teams only add a third catcher and an extra reliever on September 1st. Not the Yankees. They go all out. Last year they called up five players on September 1st. The year before it was seven players on September 1st. The year before that? Eight players on September 1st. I expect lots of September 1st call-ups again.

So, with that in mind, let’s take a moment to sort through the team’s September call-up options and figure out where each player fits, if at all. Some call-ups are kept around for emergencies only. Spare long relievers and a third catcher, guys like that. Others are brought up for a specific reason or to fill a specific role. Let’s get to it.

Injured Players

Might as well start here. The Yankees have lots of players on the disabled list right now and sometimes, rather conveniently, players will get healthy on September 1st. That happened with Matt Holliday last year. He was on the disabled list with a back issue and was activated on the first day rosters expanded. Funny how that works.

Aaron Judge (wrist) and Clint Frazier (post-concussion migraines) are both making progress but it seems very unlikely either will be ready to return next Saturday. Gary Sanchez, however, will begin a minor league rehab assignment either today or tomorrow. He’s going to play a few games in the rookie Gulf Coast League before joining Triple-A Scranton for what Aaron Boone called a “week’s worth of games.” Sure seems like Gary will return on September 1st.

Didi Gregorius is eligible to be activated next Thursday and it’s unclear right now whether he’ll be ready to be activated that day. The Yankees said they have to see how his heel responds the next few days before knowing when he’ll return. If Gregorius is ready to go Thursday, would the Yankees give him the proverbial two extra days and wait until Saturday to activate him? I don’t think so, but you never know. It would be quite easy to give Didi those two extra days to make sure he’s 100% ready to go.

Aroldis Chapman landed on the disabled list yesterday and he isn’t even eligible to be activated until next Saturday, so even if he comes back after the minimum ten days, he’ll return with expanded rosters. That makes life easy. Whenever Chapman is healthy, the Yankees will activate him and add him to the roster. They won’t have to send someone else down to accommodate him.

The Up & Down Guys

Okay, let’s get to the minor leaguers. Generally speaking, the first wave of September call-ups — those are the September 1st guys — are players who have been going up and down all year. Many of them are already in the big leagues because of the injuries though. Tommy Kahnle, Ronald Torreyes, Luke Voit … they’re with the Yankees now. If I’d written this post a week ago, those three would’ve been identified as September 1st call-ups.

There are two up-and-down guys in Triple-A right now: Tyler Wade and Luis Cessa. I expect both to come up on September 1st. Wade to give the Yankees another bench player (a four-man bench? madness!) and Cessa to be another long man and occasional spot starter. The only thing with Cessa is that he might come up as the 26th man for Saturday’s doubleheader game in Baltimore. If he does, he has to go back down after the game, then he’ll have to wait ten days to be called back up. The ten-day rules means Cessa won’t be eligible to be called back up until September 4th. Point is, as soon as he’s eligible, I think Cessa comes up.

40-Man Guys Who Might Have To Wait

At the moment the Yankees have five healthy players on the 40-man roster and in the minors: Cessa, Wade, Albert Abreu, Ryan Bollinger, and Chris Rabago. I am fairly certain Chance Adams will be sent down tomorrow when CC Sabathia is activated — Adams threw 46 ineffective pitches last night and I don’t see the Yankees keeping him around when Sabathia returns — so it’s really six healthy players on the 40-man and in the minors.

Abreu is a Single-A pitcher who’s thrown 62.2 innings around injuries this year. There is no reason to call him up in September only to have him sit in the bullpen as the 38th or 39th or 40th guy on the roster. Abreu needs to pitch. He needs to spend September in Instructional League in Tampa. That’s the best thing for his development. Rabago was claimed on waivers yesterday and is a light-hitting Double-A catcher. He’s not a call-up candidate. He’s a guy who gets dropped from the 40-man roster when a spot is needed.

Bollinger has had two one-day stints with the Yankees as an emergency arm this year and I don’t think he’s getting a September call-up. He is much more likely to be dropped from the 40-man roster to clear a spot for someone else. Bollinger is not even in Triple-A. He’s a 27-year-old journeyman with a 4.03 ERA (3.42 FIP) in 91.2 Double-A innings. Those two call-ups were “we need a warm body” call-ups, not “we like this guy” call-ups. Sorry, Ryan.

As for Adams, assuming he is sent down for Sabathia, he will be back in September for sure. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Yankees leave him in Triple-A until Scranton’s season is over though. They might not make the postseason, so it might be over soon, but if they do make the postseason, Adams could be part of the rotation. Remember, when the Yankees called Adams up for that spot start a few weeks ago, it was only because Cessa was unavailable. Letting Adams pitch in Triple-A through the end of their season seems like the way to go.

The Yankees have three injured minor league pitchers on the 40-man roster right now: Domingo Acevedo, Domingo German, and Jonathan Loaisiga. All three recently started pitching in rehab games but might not be ready to come up on September 1st. I think German comes up right away, as soon as he’s deemed fit for MLB. Acevedo and Loaisiga need innings and I expect both to stay with Double-A Trenton through the postseason. (Trenton is definitely going to the postseason.) German comes up as soon as he’s healthy. Acevedo and Loaisiga are probably going to have to wait.

Non-40-Man Roster Players

The shift to the bullpen earlier this week all but confirmed Justus Sheffield will be called up in September. The Yankees say they are going to give him 3-4 relief appearances in Triple-A — that suggests he could be a September 1st call-up — to prepare him for bullpen work in the big leagues. A September call-up has felt inevitable for weeks now. Now we know it’ll happen, and we know Sheffield will work out of the bullpen.

“We’re starting to transition him to the bullpen so that hopefully he can get a couple of outings under his belt down there, and then play a part with us in our ‘pen down the stretch,” said Boone after the Sheffield move was announced. “We think there’s some great value he could bring.”

Sheffield is getting called up in September. Stephen Tarpley might as well. Brian Cashman mentioned the southpaw by name last week when discussing call-up candidates. Tarpley has been excellent this year — his 71.0% ground ball rate leads affiliated baseball — and he’ll almost certainly be added to the 40-man roster after the season to avoid Rule 5 Draft exposure. I think he’ll get added to the 40-man in September and called up. Will he pitch? Probably in mop-up duty only, and that’s fine. Countless relievers broke in as September mop-up guys.

There are three other non-40-man players who I think I have a chance to be called up in September: George Kontos, Erik Swanson, and Gio Urshela. I don’t see guys like Mike Ford or Ryan McBroom or Abi Avelino getting called up. Avelino is the only real prospect of the bunch and he’s a fringe guy who might not get a 40-man spot after the season. Injuries could always force a call-up. I just don’t see the Yankees creating 40-man space to call those guys up though.

My hunch is George Kontos will be a September 1st call-up guy. I thought it was pretty weird a guy with his track record and service time accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A when he was designated for assignment last week. Usually a guy in his spot elects free agency and finds a team with a better shot at MLB playing time. Seems like their might’ve been an “accept the outright, go to Triple-A for two weeks, and we’ll call you up on September 1st” conversation at some point.

Urshela. (Jason Farmer/Scranton Times Tribune)

Urshela is an interesting case. The Yankees got him in a cash trade earlier this month and he’s played well with Triple-A Scranton, hitting .310/.333/.483 in 16 games. He’s a fantastic gloveman who would be a great defensive replacement for Miguel Andujar. How many infielders do the Yankees want to carry though? They’ll already have Wade and Ronald Torreyes on the September bench, plus Neil Walker could always play the infield as well. The x-factor here might be whether the Yankees want to keep Urshela for next year. Add him to the 40-man, play him in September, keep him over the winter, then bring him to camp next year? Hmmm.

Swanson? I think he’ll fall victim to the numbers crunch. Cashman did mention him by name along with Tarpley last week, but Swanson has already thrown a career high 109.1 innings this year, and the Yankees are already set to carry several spare September long men (Cessa, German, eventually Loaisiga). Do they need another one? Do they want to clear a 40-man spot to carry another one? I don’t think so. Either way, Swanson figures to stay in Triple-A through the postseason before being called up, if he is called up at all.

As for 40-man space, the Yankees are full after claiming Rabago yesterday. Both he and Bollinger can easily be dropped to open space though. Is Clint Frazier a 60-day DL candidate at this point? The Yankees could call up the injured Thairo Estrada and put him on the 60-day DL to clear another spot. That means giving Thairo a month of big league pay and service time, but that’s not a huge deal. They’ve done it before. Looks to me the Yankees have three easily available 40-man spots (Sheffield, Tarpley, Kontos?), and possibly a fourth if Frazier is indeed a 60-day DL guy.

What About A Designated Pinch-Runner?

Contending teams will often call up a crazy fast guy specifically to pinch-run and sometimes that guy winds up on the postseason roster too. Two years ago the Yankees made a minor trade for Eric Young Jr. to be their designated pinch-runner. Remember Rico Noel in 2015? Heck, Freddy Guzman was on the 2009 postseason roster as the pinch-runner. He pinch-ran twice in the team’s 15 postseason games.

Last year the Yankees did not acquire a designated pinch-runner. Why? Because they had Jacoby Ellsbury on the bench, and also Wade, who is fast as hell. Shane Robinson can also run. I don’t think the Yankees will trade for a Young or Noel or Guzman type this year, even with Ellsbury injured. I think they’ll use Wade as their primary pinch-runner with Robinson the secondary option. Never say never. Trading for a dude to pinch-run just seems so unlikely this year.

What About The Luxury Tax?

September call-ups of course count against the luxury tax payroll. Every player on the active roster or big league disabled list counts. Based on my last estimate, the Yankees have about $3.3M in wiggle room under the $197M luxury tax threshold. That number is probably closer to $2.8M or $2.9M now because the Yankees have had to call up injury replacements the last few weeks, but still, that’s plenty.

Just consider the “worst” case September call-up scenario. Say the Yankees call up the maximum 15 players on September 1st and they’re all making $600,000 at the MLB level. That is $3,225.81 per day per player. Call it $3,300 to make the math easy. Fifteen players times 30 days in September (the season ends September 30th) times $3,300 per day equals $1.485M added to the luxury tax payroll. That fits within the team’s available payroll, and remember, this is a very conservative example. Fifteen players making $600,000? Not happening. The luxury tax won’t be an issue for September call-ups.

* * *

Now that I think about it, I don’t expect Acevedo to get a September call-up. He did spend one day in the big leagues earlier this year, but that was an emergency situation. Injuries have limited Acevedo 63.2 innings this season — he threw a career high 133 innings last year — and the Yankees may rather send him to Instructional League so he can actually pitch. Acevedo would be what, the 15th option out of the bullpen in September? Yeah, I think he gets a call-up.

Okay, so based on all that, here are the call-ups I expect to happen in September:

September 1st: Cessa (September 4th?), Kontos, Sheffield, Wade
Called up/activated once healthy: Chapman, German, Gregorius, Sanchez
Called up after minor league seasons ends: Adams, Loaisiga, Tarpley

Not including the injured big leaguers, that is eight players added to the roster in September. Judge and hopefully Frazier will be activated at some point as well. So that’s eight minor league call-ups (Adams, Cessa, German, Kontos, Loaisiga, Sheffield, Tarpley, Wade) and five injury activations (Chapman, Frazier, Gregorius, Judge, Sanchez), giving the team 13 additional players in September and a 38-man roster.

Urshela is the wildcard here, moreso than Swanson. I don’t expect the Yankees to open up a 40-man spot to carry yet another pitcher in September. (Another pitcher who doesn’t figure to pitch much.) Urshela would be a high-end defensive caddy for Andujar and another warm body for mass substitutions in blowouts. The Yankees will need 40-man spots for Kontos, Sheffield, and Tarpley. If they open another one, I think it goes to Urshela. Another pitcher is overkill, even in September.

Yankees place Chapman on 10-day DL, call up Chance Adams

August 22, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

Another Yankee is heading to the disabled list. Aroldis Chapman has been placed on the 10-day DL with left knee tendinitis, the Yankees announced. The team has not yet announced a timetable for his return. Chance Adams was called up from Triple-A Scranton to fill the roster spot.

Chapman left last night’s game after six pitches with knee pain. He’s been pitching through knee inflammation all year and it seems to be getting worse — Chapman said last night he had more pain than earlier this season — not better. Here’s video of his outing and the call for the trainer:

The Yankees have a deep bullpen with no shortage of replacement closer options. My guess is Zach Britton will get the first crack at the job, though it could also be Dellin Betances or David Robertson. Whoever ends up closing, the other two will join Chad Green and Jonathan Holder in the setup crew.

Chapman joins Didi Gregorius (heel), Aaron Judge (wrist), Gary Sanchez (groin), Clint Frazier (post-concussion migraines), CC Sabathia (knee), and Jordan Montgomery (Tommy John surgery) on the disabled list, among others. Good thing the Yankees are pretty much locked into a postseason spot, huh? Would stink to lose those guys in the middle of a heated race.

Adams was scheduled to start for Triple-A Scranton today and that means he’s available for very long relief, which we all hope isn’t necessary. There’s a pretty good chance Adams will be sent down after tonight’s game since there’s an off-day tomorrow and Sabathia is coming off the disabled list Friday.

Game 114: Start of the Homestand

August 9, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

The seven-game road trip is over and the Yankees are back home in the Bronx for a long eleven-game homestand. I can’t remember the last eleven-game homestand. Usually they cap these things at ten games, but the Yankees lost Monday’s off-day to a makeup game with the Mets, so eleven games it is. Well, whatever. This homestand is a great chance to do some damage in the standings.

On the mound tonight will be J.A. Happ, who has returned from the disabled list and will be making his second start as a Yankee. The first went very well. Too bad the hand, foot, and mouth disease — I still can’t believe not one, but two New York baseball players have landed on the disabled list with that this season — sent him to disabled list. Oh well. At least Happ is back tonight. Here are the lineups:

New York Yankees
1. LF Brett Gardner
2. DH Giancarlo Stanton
3. SS Didi Gregorius
4. CF Aaron Hicks
5. 1B Greg Bird
6. 3B Miguel Andujar
7. 2B Neil Walker
8. C Austin Romine
9. RF Shane Robinson

LHP J.A. Happ

Texas Rangers
1. DH Shin-Soo Choo
2. 2B Rougned Odor
3. SS Elvis Andrus
4. 3B Adrian Beltre
5. 1B Jurickson Profar
6. RF Joey Gallo
7. C Robinson Chirinos
8. LF Willie Calhoun
9. CF Carlos Tocci

RHP Ariel Jurado

It is hot and humid in New York and will be until the day the sun swallows the Earth. Tonight’s game will begin at 7:05pm ET and YES will have the broadcast. Enjoy the ballgame.

Roster Move: As expected, Chance Adams was sent back to Triple-A Scranton to clear a roster spot for Happ, the Yankees announced. Adams was sent down following last night’s game.

Injury Update: Aaron Judge (wrist) still has pain and is not yet swinging a bat. He’s doing pretty much everything else though. He’s scheduled to see the doctor tonight for a checkup … Gary Sanchez (groin) has been cleared to resume running. He’s also ramping up his hitting and defensive rehab work as well … Aroldis Chapman is available. He was available last night too. The Yankees held Chapman out a few days because he was sore following Sunday’s extended outing. He’s good to go now.

Game 109: Chance the Spot Starter

August 4, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

Welcome to the big leagues, Chance Adams. Now go pitch in Fenway Park in a nationally televised game against a juggernaut lineup in what is probably the Yankees’ most important game of the season. A win today and there’s still some hope for the AL East title. Another loss and it’s probably time to start focusing on a wildcard spot.

As best I can tell, Adams will be the first player to make his MLB debut with the Yankees as a starter in Boston since Randy Keisler in September 2000. He’s the first to do it outside expanded rosters since Bob Meyer in April 1964. The last two pitchers to make their MLB debut with the Yankees at Fenway Park in any role? Shane Greene in 2014 and Mark Melancon in 2009. Those two worked out well.

I really wish the Yankees would use an opener today. Let David Robertson or even Dellin Betances face the top of the lineup in the first inning, then turn it over to Adams and hope he can get through five innings while only facing the top of the lineup once. Seems like a good idea. Alas. It’ll be Adams from the get-go. Go get ’em, kid. Here are the lineups:

New York Yankees
1. LF Brett Gardner
2. DH Giancarlo Stanton
3. SS Didi Gregorius
4. CF Aaron Hicks
5. 2B Gleyber Torres
6. 1B Greg Bird
7. 3B Miguel Andujar
8. C Austin Romine
9. RF Shane Robinson

RHP Chance Adams

Boston Red Sox
1. RF Mookie Betts
2. LF Andrew Benintendi
3. 1B Mitch Moreland
4. DH J.D. Martinez
5. SS Xander Bogaerts
6. 3B Eduardo Nunez
7. SS Brock Holt
8. C Sandy Leon
9. CF Jackie Bradley Jr.

RHP Nathan Eovaldi

The rain has cleared out and they should have no trouble starting this afternoon’s game on time. It’ll be cloudy and humid though. Today’s game will begin at 4:05pm ET and both YES and Fox Sports 1 will have the broadcast. Enjoy the game.

Roster Move: Tommy Kahnle was sent back down to Triple-A Scranton to clear a roster spot for Adams, the Yankees announced. Adams takes an open 40-man roster spot, so no other move was needed.

Injury Update: Aaron Judge (wrist) has not yet started swinging a bat but he did stand in the box during CC Sabathia’s bullpen session, so he’s started tracking pitches. Swinging the bat should happen soon, perhaps tomorrow … J.A. Happ (hand, foot, and mouth disease) is doing much better and is expected to start Thursday, the first day he’s eligible to come off the disabled list.

Yankees reportedly calling up Chance Adams to start Saturday

August 3, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

According to Joel Sherman, the Yankees are planning to call up Chance Adams to start Saturday’s game. He’ll be filling in for J.A. Happ, who is out with hand, foot, and mouth disease. Luis Cessa had been tentatively scheduled to start Saturday, but was needed in long relief last night.

Adams, 23, is the team’s No. 8 prospect. He’s had an uneven season with Triple-A Scranton, throwing 98 innings with a 4.50 ERA (4.30 FIP). His strikeout rate is good (24.2%). His walk (11.4%) and ground ball (43.0%) rates are not. Adams took a no-hitter into the seventh inning last time out and he has a 3.32 ERA (3.85 FIP) in his last nine starts and 43.1 innings, so at least he’s trending in the right direction.

Here’s an updated scouting report, via MLB.com:

After sitting at 93-95 mph with his fastball in his first two seasons as pro starter, Adams had offseason surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow and has operated at 91-93 in 2018. His slider has lost a couple of ticks of velocity as well and isn’t as sharp as it has been in the past.

Besides regaining his velocity, the key for Adams to reaching his upside as a No. 3 starter will be refining his changeup into a solid third offering. He also has a curveball that’s his fourth-best pitch yet still qualifies as average. He lives on the corners and the bottom of the strike zone, making it difficult to square him up.

To me, this is the perfect opportunity for the Yankees to use an “opener” a la the Rays. Start a reliever on Saturday, let him get through the big bats at the top of the lineup, then turn it over to Adams and hope he can give you five innings while only facing the top of the lineup once. Maybe David Robertson can do it? Letting Adams face Mookie Betts, Andrew Benintendi, and J.D. Martinez in Fenway Park in his first inning as a big leaguer is rough.

Opener or no opener, Adams will be the fourth player to make his MLB debut with the Yankees this season, joining Jonathan Loaisiga, Billy McKinney, and Gleyber Torres. The Yankees have an open 40-man roster spot for Adams, so that won’t be an issue. He’ll be Rule 5 Draft eligible after the season and was going to be added to the 40-man anyway. The Yankees are just getting a head start on it.

Taking stock of the Yankees’ trade chips prior to the deadline

June 20, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

We are less than six weeks away from the 2018 non-waiver trade deadline and already the trade winds are beginning to blow. The Rays sent Denard Span and Alex Colome to the Mariners a few weeks ago, and the Royals have since gotten in on the act by trading Jon Jay to the Diamondbacks and Kelvin Herrera to the Nationals. The sellers are starting to sell.

The Yankees, clearly, will be buyers prior to the trade deadline. Starting pitching is an obvious need. Adding a reliever could be worthwhile too. It is entirely possible other needs will pop up over the next few weeks as well. The Yankees have luxury tax payroll space and a deep cache of prospects, which allows them to buy basically whatever they want at the deadline. They can get anyone.

“Clearly starting pitching was always a concern. It’s definitely one of the areas we’re going to be looking at,” said Hal Steinbrenner to Scott Orgera at the quarterly owners’ meetings last week. “Purposely left a decent amount of money for just this. If we decide to go get a pitcher and if a pitcher’s available, I think we definitely have the flexibility that would allow me to do just that.”

While no player is ever truly untouchable, the Yankees do have some untouchables. Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, and Luis Severino are as untouchable as it gets and Gleyber Torres has joined that group as well. “Come on now. I’ve got to walk around this city,” joke Brian Cashman to Erik Boland the other day when asked whether trading Torres is a possibility. Even with those guys off the table, the Yankees have plenty of trade chips. Let’s take stock.

The Andujar Question

Might as well start here. The Yankees reportedly made Miguel Andujar off-limits in trade talks over the winter and we’ve seen why so far this season. Even with a tiny little recent slump, Andujar is still hitting .290/.317/.519 (125 wRC+) with an 18.1% strikeout rate. A .229 ISO and an 18.1% strikeout rate is one hell of a combination for a rookie. We’ve also seen Andujar hit all types of pitching already.

That said, should Andujar be off-limits? You could argue his trade value is higher right now than ever before because he’s had some big league success and is still so young with so much team control. Andujar’s probably never going to walk much and his defense, which is serviceable, might never be better than, well, serviceable. I’m not saying the Yankees should give Andujar away. I love the kid. I’m just saying he’s not as untouchable as Torres.

The Top Chips

Brandon Drury’s presence is the reason Andujar should not be untouchable. The Yankees have an MLB ready third baseman — their Opening Day third baseman, in fact — stashed in Triple-A. Drury is only 25 himself and, with another two weeks or so in the minors, his free agency will be pushed back one year. He’s hitting .360/.470/.529 (187 wRC+) with the RailRiders, and while that’s great, I’d expect a dude with two-plus years as an everyday big leaguer to wreck Triple-A pitching. That’s what Drury is doing.

Ostensibly, Drury does not have as much trade value as Andujar because he’s a little older and doesn’t come with as much team control. He is very clearly a trade chip though. The Yankees can’t keep him in Triple-A much longer. I mean, they could, but at some point there are diminishing returns. I’m not sure Drury is learning much or developing new skills right now. We are fast approaching the point where the Yankees either have to trade him or call him up before he starts to stagnate.

Among the guys we know the Yankees are willing to deal, Clint Frazier is the best trade chip. He’s 23, he’s been destroying Triple-A, he’s had some MLB success, and he’s not far removed from being a top prospect. The Yankees have a full outfield. As much as I would love the Yankees to get Frazier into the lineup on an everyday basis next year, they would be crazy to make him untouchable at the deadline. They reportedly offered him to the Pirates in a potential Gerrit Cole deal and he’s playing center field in Triple-A in what amounts to showcase. He’s available.

Justus Sheffield is, by no small margin, the top pitching prospect in the farm system. He was said to be on the team’s list of untouchables over the winter, though pitchers break and have such a high attrition rate — Sheffield has some command issues himself — that it would be silly to make him off-limits. If the Yankees have a chance to add a quality young pitcher like, say, Blake Snell, of course you trade Sheffield. We’re all hoping Sheffield one day turns into Snell! So trade him for the real Snell. The Yankees won’t deal Sheffield for a rental. But a young guy with years of team control? All bets are off.

The Second Tier

A few months ago Estevan Florial would’ve been among the top chips. Right now he’s coming back from wrist surgery — a fairly common wrist surgery, but still wrist surgery — and his swing-and-miss issues still exist. Because of that, I think he’s more of a second tier trade chip right. I don’t think Florial can headline a package for an impact pitcher at the moment. I also don’t think the Yankees will move him while his stock is down, unless it’s a deal they can’t refuse.

Many of the second tier guys are MLB ready or near MLB ready depth pieces. Tyler Wade. Billy McKinney. Chance Adams. None of them can headline a package for an impact player right now, but a deal for a lesser player? Or as the second or third piece in a larger trade? For sure. Wade is a legitimate shortstop and middle infielder with speed and those guys are hard to find. McKinney has a sweet swing and some power. I’m sure some teams still buy Adams as a starter. Good depth players who the Yankees can’t fit on the roster. Of course they’re available.

Among their tippy top prospects, I get the sense the Yankees are more willing to deal Albert Abreu than anyone. He’s had some injuries — this year’s appendectomy is nothing, but last year he had elbow and lat problems — and while the stuff is excellent, the command is far from it. Between the injuries, the lack of command, and the distance to the big leagues (he’s in High-A), Abreu strikes me as a top 100 caliber prospect the Yankees would be very open to moving. He has a long way to go to be the pitcher he has the potential to be and the Yankees are in win-now mode.

The Impending Rule 5 Draft Guys

When you have a great farm system, you’re going to lose players in the Rule 5 Draft. There aren’t enough roster spots to go around and the system is designed to give blocked players an opportunity. The Yankees lost eight total players in the last two Rule 5 Drafts (four each year), six more than any other team. Seven of those eight players came back — Luis Torres is the only exception — but still. You don’t want to risk losing players for nothing.

As a result, the Yankees have been active trading fringe 40-man roster players in recent years. That way they get something in return rather than potentially nothing. Zack Littell went to the Twins in the Jaime Garcia trade, and Ian Clarkin and Tito Polo went to the White Sox in the big Todd Frazier trade. They were traded weeks before they had to be added to the 40-man roster for Rule 5 Draft protection purposes. Here are this offseason’s notable Rule 5 Draft eligibles:

Catchers: None
Infielders: Diego Castillo, Dermis Garcia, Kyle Holder, Hoy Jun Park
Outfielders: Florial (I think)
Pitchers: Abreu, Adams, Sheffield, Cody Carroll, Juan De Paula, Freicer Perez (I think), Josh Rogers, Dillon Tate

Two names immediately jump out as potential “trade them before you have to add them to the 40-man roster” candidates: Rogers and Tate. Rogers is the left-handed Littell to me. Great minor league performance to date, good pitchability, not blow-you-away stuff. I don’t think it’s crazy to worry his lack of grounders (39.9% in Triple-A) and lack of swings and misses (9.0%) won’t translate well to Yankee Stadium, even as a lefty.

As for Tate, he was the fourth overall pick in the draft three years ago and he’s been very good this season, throwing 66.2 innings with a 3.11 ERA (3.38 FIP) at Double-A. You’d like to see more strikeouts (22.9%) from a dude with his stuff, but the walk (5.9%) and ground ball (50.8%) numbers are good. I wonder if this is a situation where his trade value exceeds his real life value. There’s a decent chance Tate is a reliever long-term. A good one, but still a reliever. Another club might view him as a no-doubt starter and fall in love with the whole “former No. 4 pick” thing.

Regardless of what the Yankees do with Rogers and Tate — right now I’d bet on Tate being added to the 40-man roster and Rogers not, assuming they aren’t traded — there is going to be some roster shuffling in the coming weeks. A few of these Rule 5 Draft eligibles could be moved prior to the trade deadline or soon after the season. Aside from Sheffield, there’s no stud here that will net you an impact big league player. These guys are for depth moves or to fill out a larger package.

The Lower Level Guys

Moreso than ever before, teams are taking very low level minor leaguers in trades. And I don’t mean low level as in not highly regarded. I mean the low levels of the minors. One of the prospects in the Kelvin Herrera trade was a 17-year-old in rookie ball. The second piece in last year’s Justin Wilson/Alex Avila trade was an 18-year-old in Single-A. The Yankees traded 20-year-old Blake Rutherford last year.

Teams are trying to acquire these talented young players before they break out into top prospects — the Yankees themselves have done this with the Nick Rumbelow trade (18-year-old Juan Then) and the Jake Cave trade (20-year-old Luis Gil) — and the Yankees have some of these players to offer, I think. Then is one. So is Saul Torres, Alex Vargas, Roansy Contreras, and Pablo Olivares. Guys like that are involved in trades more than ever before.

Could Luis Medina, Everson Pereira, or Ezequiel Duran be trade chips? They’re all teenagers and they’re all on the cusp of becoming excellent prospects, but of course they’re trade chips. The Yankees are a bona fide World Series contender. They’d be nuts to let a teenager in rookie stand in the way of a win-now trade. I’m not saying they should give those guys away! But they have value and they’re in demand, and they’re so far away from the big leaguers that they can’t be untouchable.

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Trading players off your big league roster is not usually something a contending team does, but it is definitely possible. Neil Walker could go in a deal to offset salary a la Tyler Clippard last year, for example. I’d be surprised if the Yankees traded a reliever. I’d be even more surprised if they traded Sonny Gray, even in a deal for another starter. To me, the master plan is add a starter and get Gray on track, not replace Gray.

Domingo German and Jonathan Loaisiga are on the big league roster right now — they’re not just on the roster, they’re making starts every fifth day — and they’re trade chips for sure. German has shown promising swing-and-miss ability and everyone loves Johnny Lasagna, but they both have scary injury histories, and if they can help the Yankees get a potential difference-maker, of course they’ll trade ’em.

All of that is the long way of saying the Yankees have trade chips in all shapes and sizes. Once upon a time they were dealing from a pool of, like, three desirable prospects. Now they have pitchers, position players, MLB ready guys, far away guys, you name it. The Yankees can meet pretty much any asking price. That doesn’t mean they will. If the Yankees lose a bidding war this year, it’ll be because they don’t want to give up the pieces, not because they don’t have the pieces.