Jeff Passan of ESPN put Brian Cashman as one of the executives with plenty of pressure ahead of the deadline, as the Yankees are spiraling out of control. They’ve lost 16 of their last 22 games since being the first team to reach 50 wins this season, and things are looking grim in the Bronx. Without a series win in each of their last seven attempts, including a sweep by the Reds and a series loss at the hands of the Red Sox, they are in dire times. With the trade deadline just around the corner, Passan listed three players as potential fits for their needs.
Luis Rengifo and Carlos Estevez of the Los Angeles Angels alongside Tanner Scott of the Miami Marlins are three names who could boost a depleted infield and bullpen, but should the Yankees target these trade pieces?
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One of the biggest targets for the Yankees has been Luis Rengifo, who has been one of the best contact hitters in the big leagues this season. Through his first 69 games, the 27-year-old has six home runs, 22 steals, and is slashing .315/.358/.442 with an excellent ability to pick up hits. One of the biggest problems with his profile offensively is the underwhelming batted ball data, having a .349 BABIP and 2.8% Barrel Rate, which doesn’t bode well for his ability to sustain his OPS moving forward.
Defensively he leaves a lot to be desired as well, struggling to handle either second base or third base, which could be an issue with the amount of contact pitchers the Yankees have. Perhaps a way they can mitigate that is by dealing for his teammate Carlos Estevez, as the right-hander has a high strikeout rate and low walk rate, pitching to an excellent 2.89 ERA as the Angels’ closer. He’s 16 for 19 on saves and does a great job of generating strikeouts while keeping the bases clean, but he does get hit pretty hard.\
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The right-hander is in the final year of his contract, but Luis Rengifo has an extra year of control, so we could see the Yankees decide to trade for both in a package. It would boost the lineup and bullpen, but they would have to hold up their performance and neither are household names. The most dominant option in this group is likely Tanner Scott, as the southpaw has an excellent fastball-slider mix that allows him to miss plenty of bats.
Across 38 innings Tanner Scott has a 1.42 ERA and 42 strikeouts, and while walks were a problem for the first few weeks of the season, they’ve improved dramatically. His fastball is sharp with good vertical life and plenty of velocity whereas the slider has two-plane movement at 87-88 MPH. He would bring a stable closing option who can terrorize left-handed batters with ease, and on the final year of his deal, there’s no chance the Miami Marlins decide to hold onto him this deadline.