Could Yankees make rare AL East trade for All-Star infielder?
Andy Martino of SNY reported that the Tampa Bay Rays have scouts at the New York Yankees’ Single-A affiliate also located in Tampa. With the trade deadline around the corner, both the Rays and Yankees are expected to be active ahead of the July 30th deadline, although they could find themselves on opposite sides of the spectrum. While Brian Cashman will be furiously searching for upgrades, Erik Neander might look to sell off some key pieces to build up their burgeoning farm system.
Isaac Paredes, who was the Rays’ All-Star representative this past season, is someone the Rays are listening on offers for according to Martino, sparking the question of whether the Yankees would pull off a rare in-division blockbuster.
Isaac Paredes Could Be the Yankees’ Star Target at the Deadline
It’s another excellent campaign for Isaac Paredes, who was named to the AL All-Star team as the Tampa Bay Rays’ representative, mashing 15 home runs in 91 games and having a 138 wRC+. The right-handed hitting infielder is an above-average defender at the hot corner and has the pull-side power to launch the ball out of the stadium with ease despite some subpar hard-hit numbers.
What the Yankees have at third base right now simply isn’t good enough, but if they want to add someone like Isaac Paredes to their lineup, it would take a serious haul. Expect names like Spencer Jones to be floated around in any conversation regarding an infielder with multiple years of control after the 2024 season, especially since he’s only 25 years old.
This is a young superstar in his prime, and he currently has the highest wRC+ from any qualified third baseman over the last two seasons (137). It would cost an arm and a leg, but it could be a trade worth pursuing as it would put Paredes, Soto, and Judge in the same lineup and give them an incredible offensive trio that can crush opposing pitching staffs with the long ball.
Add on the contributions Ben Rice has given you and what you could get from Giancarlo Stanton when he returns from the IL and suddenly you have a team with serious lineup depth.
