Yankees Make Several Moves At the Trading Deadline

As someone who blogs mostly about the Yankees minor league system, the trade deadline is typically an exciting time - which of their bigger name prospects are on the table, and which players are they looking to get in return?  In most years, the answer is simply a bunch of rumors without any action.  This year is a tad different, as there was a lot of action, but nothing that fits the definition of a truly major trade.

Instead of going through them all one by one, let us look at the totality of all of the trades:

Yankees receive RHP Brandon McCarthy, 3B Chase Headley, IF Stephen Drew, and UTIL Martin Prado in exchange for LHP Vidal Nuno, RHP Rafael DePaula, IF Yangveris Solarte, IF Kelly Johnson, C/1B/Wherever Pete O'Brien, and a player to be named later.    That is a lot of names - most of which fall into a bit of a generic category.  Sure, most of them are useful - but none are franchise-turning moves. 

To be exact, the Yankees made moves to upgrade slightly in 2014, while giving themselves options for 2015:

McCarthy has pitched very well since coming over from Arizona, and could pitch himself into a 2015 contract if he keeps it up.   As a back-of-the-rotation starter, he would probably be just fine and give the Yankees one less thing to worry about.

Headley was defined as a "pure rental" by Brian Cashman, but it is hard to believe him completely on that.  He is an above average defensive third baseman with one big career year on his resume offensively.    If he proves he can be at least average offensively the rest of the season, the Yankees can probably resign him at a reasonable market rate.

Drew is the biggest wild-card of the entire bunch.    Unless you are living under a rock, you know there is a big hole at the shortstop position starting in 2015, with no immediate help in the minor leagues to fill it.  This is essentially a two-month audition for Drew to prove to the Yankees he can be that guy.  The early returns on his season were not encouraging, but he has hit much better in his last 19 games (.215/.329/.477 in 76 plate appearances) than he did in his first 19 games.   That is essentially what Drew is when he is healthy:  Not much average, some plate discipline, and above average power for a middle infielder.

Prado is the only player they acquired who will definitely be on the squad in 2015 if the Yankees don't trade him (unlikely, given his contract).   He can play many different positions, but is more than just a utility player, as he has played every day in the past several seasons.  He has been going through a down year in 2014 (.686 OPS; 91 OPS+) but has generally been an above average defensive player and an average offensive one, providing a decent batting average and decent pop, but not much in the OBP or speed department.

As for what the Yankees gave up from their system, the "sexiest" name may be Pete O'Brien, due to that enormous home run total (33) in the minor leagues this season.  However, he is a man without much of a position, and there are questions about whether he can make enough consistent contact to be useful offensively.  His power is real - he can hit major league mistakes a mile.  But that is the only above average part to his game, as he many not have a position to play, doesn't profile as a high-average or high OBP guy, etc.   Essentially, the Diamondbacks were looking to dump a salary and took back a decent prospect with probably a 30% chance of becoming a big league player, and a 5% or so chance of being a legitimate one.

However, the player with the biggest chance to become something truly useful is Rafael DePaula, due to a big fastball that the Padres can try out in the bullpen if and when the time comes.   For the Yankees, this represents a small risk, because they have plenty of depth in the reliever department from the majors all the way down the minor league system.  DePaula has struggled to get out of High-A ball as a starter and already is a bit advanced in age, so the Yankees lost very little sleep allowing him to go. 

The future?  None of these moves are truly blocking any of the Yankees minor league players.  Their best shortstop prospects are teenagers who are several seasons away.  Their best third base prospects (especially Eric Jagielo) are likely looking at 2016 if they develop.   With Kuroda likely retiring and the unknown futures of Tanaka, Sabathia, and Pienda (to a lesser extent, Nova), McCarthy wouldn't be blocking a soul - if he pitches well, the Yankees will likely bring him back because they need the depth.   The best player Prado may block is someone like Jose Pirela, who has hit very well in Scranton in 2014, but has never been a truly big prospect.   On top of that, Prado offers more defense and likely more major league offense.

Overall Grade for the Yankees Front Office?  I would say a solid B - not because of what they acquired, but because of what they gave up to acquire it.  They made some marginal-to-decent upgrades in several spots without mortgaging anything that was in their future plan, either near-term nor long-term.      So, for those who are "prospect huggers", you should be happy:  Luis Severino, Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird, Ian Clarkin, etc. are all still here.   In some ways, the Yankees got a bit lucky if the goal was to not make a big splash.  No pressure to acquire the biggest names on the market (Lester, Price), because they were unlikely to be moved within the division.