The Yankees are running out of time to fix their biggest problems.
After a rough finish to the first half, New York finds itself in a tight division race with the Toronto Blue Jays pulling ahead and the Boston Red Sox breathing down their necks. The AL playoff picture keeps getting more competitive by the day.
Third base has become their most glaring weakness. Starting pitching just joined that list after Clarke Schmidt’s season-ending injury. The Yankees need to address both holes within the next two weeks.
What if they could knock out both needs in one swing?
Jon Heyman of the New York Post floated a trade Sunday that would send 3B Eugenio Suárez and SP Zac Gallen from Arizona to New York. The cost? Pitching prospects Cam Schlittler, Cade Smith, and Brock Selvidge.
“It feels like the Yankees will do something big,” one rival exec told Heyman. “To fill all three needs at once is tough, but wouldn’t a trade with the Diamondbacks for two rental players work beautifully?”
There’s a catch, though. The D-backs still want to buy, not sell. GM Mike Hazen made that clear to Heyman recently. Arizona’s sitting at .500 but they’re not waving the white flag yet.
Suárez should be the Yankees’ top third base target anyway. The right-handed bat brings serious pop – he’s already knocked 31 homers this season. That’s exactly what New York’s lineup needs.
Gallen is where things get tricky.
The righty has struggled to a 5.40 ERA this year, a far cry from his third-place Cy Young finish in 2023. That’s not exactly the ace-level performance you’d expect when trading three of your best pitching prospects.
Both Suárez and Gallen are pure rentals, which means the Yankees would be betting their farm system’s future on a championship run this October. Giving up that trio of prospects is definitely an all-in move.
From where I’m sitting, that’s exactly the kind of move this Yankees team needs to make. They’ve got Aaron Judge in his prime and a core that won’t stay together forever. Sometimes you have to push your chips to the center of the table.
The question is whether Arizona will actually listen to offers, and whether Gallen’s recent struggles make this particular package worth the risk.
