The Yankees might be second-guessing a trade they walked away from this winter.
While they successfully landed Cody Bellinger from the Cubs and Devin Williams from the Brewers after losing Juan Soto to the Mets, it’s a deal that didn’t happen that’s now raising eyebrows in the Bronx.
Brian Cashman had the opportunity to swap reigning AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil for Astros star Kyle Tucker in December but ultimately declined, according to NJ Advance Media’s Bob Klapisch.
“Cashman passed on the chance to trade Gil to the Astros for outfielder Kyle Tucker in December,” Klapisch wrote. “The GM valued the next five years of contract control over Gil, not to mention building around the American League’s Rookie of the Year.”
That decision isn’t aging well. Gil has been sidelined with a lat injury that will keep him out for at least several weeks of the regular season. Meanwhile, Tucker landed with the Cubs instead.
The timing couldn’t be worse for the Yankees. They’re already dealing with Giancarlo Stanton’s injury keeping him out for Opening Day, and Tucker would’ve provided serious lineup protection alongside Aaron Judge. He’s established himself as one of baseball’s most productive outfielders with a career .274/.353/.516 slash line and would likely offer more offensive upside than Bellinger.
There was logic behind Cashman’s hesitation, though. Tucker has just one year remaining on his contract while Gil offers five years of team control. The financial commitment to keep Tucker beyond 2025 would be substantial – Spotrac projects his next deal at seven years, $195 million.
With injuries mounting as Opening Day approaches, don’t be surprised if the Yankees revisit the trade market for reinforcements. The question is whether they’ll find another opportunity as intriguing as the one they passed up with Tucker.
