The New York Yankees are winning the 2021 Trade Deadline
Brian Cashman has just shown that the resting giant has officially awoken at the 2021 trade deadline. In the span of the 24 hours, Cashman has traded the depth of the farm system for Joey Gallo and Anthony Rizzo to bolster the Bomber lineup for this year’s playoff push.
Following a 14-0 drubbing the Yankee front office hit the
phones again to get reinforcements to help a team that is still searching for
an identity as the calendar turns to August. Gallo and Rizzo give this team an identity.
Gallo is a hungry slugger who has a lot to prove for the team he grew up
rooting for. Rizzo is a proven big game player who is looking to show that his
best days are not behind him.
Both Gallo and Rizzo are lefty bats to balance a heavily
right-handed lineup, both get on base a ton (Rizzo .346 OBP, Gallo .379 OBP who
also leads the majors in walks) and will use the short porch in right to add
dollar signs to their next respective contracts. What these two also do extraordinarily
well is use their gloves.
According to Fangraphs, Joey Gallo has 14 DRS (Defensive Runs
Saved) in the outfield, while also being the American League’s Gold Glove
Winner in right field last year. Of all the outfielders that have trot out
during this season for the Yanks, Gallo’s 14 DRS is far above everyone else,
Aaron Judge leads all current Yankees with 6 DRS up to this point. Anthony
Rizzo has had a down year in the field with -2 DRS, but Rizzo was the National
League’s Gold Glove Winner at first base last year and has averaged 6.8 DRS per
year in his career.
The biggest question mark left by these moves is what do the
Yankees do with Luke Voit? Voit is scheduled to return to the majors soon following
his most recent trip to the IL with left knee inflammation and is the defending
Major League Home Run champ. The most logical improvement the Yankees have yet
to address so far at the deadline is starting pitching depth. Colorado’s Jon Gray
is on top of the possibilities list, while playoff proven Adam Wainwright and Jon
Lester are two arms that could be dark horse picks who can look to get more
meaningful baseball played at the end of their careers (especially with both
St. Louis and Washington seemingly out of the playoff race). The Bombers have
also been linked to more bullpen arms following parting ways Justin Wilson and
Luis Cessa prior to the Joey Gallo trade. Whatever Brian Cashman pulls the
trigger on next, keep one thing in mind, the New York Yankees are not going
quietly in 2021.
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