If the New York Yankees ended up trading Gleyber Torres now, it would be no surprise, given he’s been involved in potential trade talks for several years now. However, general manager Brian Cashman suggesting that Torres is one of their best hitters and helped carry their offense at times during 2023 certainly doesn’t promote the idea of moving him.
Cashman has discussed moving Torres in the past for pitching, but several deals fell through, and negotiations never materialized into something tangible.
Gleyber must be feeling a lack of loyalty from the Yankees despite fighting through adversity and heading into the final year of arbitration before he becomes a free agent. It doesn’t seem as though the Yankees will offer him a long-term extension at 27 years old; rather, they will try to float his value in hopes of reinforcing the starting rotation this upcoming season.
- Yankees’ top prospect, promising infielder commence rehab assignments
- Yankees MiLB Report (5/14): FCL Action, Catchers Flourish, and Pitching Gems
- Yankees’ offense gearing up for a bottom-half boost
The Yankees are “open to” Moving Gleyber
According to Brian Hoch of MLB.com, Hal Steinbrenner views Anthony Volpe and Oswald Peraza as their middle infielders, but that would put Torres on the outside, which certainly shouldn’t be the case.
Let’s review the numbers: Torres is coming off a season where he hit .273/.347/.453, including 25 homers, 68 RBIs, and a 123 wRC+. This is a quality player that produced 23% more than the average hitter last season. His strikeout rate reduced from 22.6% in 2022 to 14.6%, and his walk rate increased by 3.2% in the process, hitting double digits.
Defensively, Torres has been inconsistent, putting together a tremendous 2022 season, which included nine defensive runs saved, but took a step in the wrong direction over 1,255.2 innings this past year. He earned -4 defensive runs saved and -3 outs above average. Many recall the errors and base running mishaps, which certainly may promote the idea of moving him now for pitching value. However, he is a strong hitter, and having him feature in the middle of the batting order is a huge bonus.
Unless the Yankees were able to get substantial value in exchange for Torres, meaning a young pitcher with control, this shouldn’t even be a consideration.
The Miami Marlins seem like a decent fit, given their infield needs and the Yankees have been connected to Jesus Luzardo. Luzardo would be a solid piece in the rotation, he is 26 years old and is under control until 2027. He pitched a career-high 178.2 innings this past season with a 3.58 ERA. This may be one of the few moves that make sense, but if the Yankees really want to win a World Series next season, leveraging some of their prospects instead of proven MLB talent that can help them win now certainly seems like an ideal path.