The New York Yankees are still in the market looking for an ideal rotation piece. But they can be more or less happy with how the current offseason has been for them. After all, they added a superstar slugger in the mix. However, to land Soto and other outfielders like Alex Verdugo and Trent Grisham, the NY side sacrificed a lot of pitchers and catchers. As a result, the Yankees don’t have an ideal choice for a starting partner for Gerrit Cole. Hence, they have been strategizing and planning their next moves in the last few weeks. Most importantly, the missing opportunity to land the Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto must have hurt them real bad.
However, they must get over it as soon as possible. Time is running out, and along with it, the best possible options for the Bronx Bombers’ starting pitcher might also move to other teams. Currently, the Yankees are looking at Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery, and Dylan Cease as their potential trade target. But the New York Post’s Jon Heyman revealed the NY side is also talking to the Miami Marlins to make a deal for Braxton Garrett.
If Yankees Don’t Land Their Main Targets, They Might Have To Try To Sign Braxton Garrett
The Miami Marlins drafted Garrett back in 2016. Moreover, he started in the minor league and got a few breaks in the major league in 2020 and 2021. But in the previous couple of seasons, Braxton Garrett has shown quite a promise as a reliable starter in the mid-rotation. Since 2022, Garrett has pitched at least 240 innings and has the eighth-lowest walk rate (5.2%) along with Zack Wheeler. Moreover, Garrett is pretty good with called strikes and whiff rate (30.4%). He also has the 13th highest groundball rate (48.9%). Garrett’s fastball is around 90.5 mph.
Moreover, he has a pinpoint control and a wicked movement while pitching that makes him among the best MLB pitchers to have a command over the strike zones and get more called strikes. Garrett’s top pitches include slider, sinker, and changeup. Anyway, the Yankees are no strangers to the Marlins in terms of trading players. However, any pitching deal with the Miami team will be pretty steep for the Yankees. The four starters of the Marlins are coming with multiple years of team control. Garrett might not be a frontline starter. But he can be a nice insurance for the NY side.
Pinstripes Have Solved Their Offensive Problem To A Great Extent
The addition of Juan Soto does make the Pinstripe’s offseason activities look good. However, the big concern for the front office at present is the worsening pitching situation. It was much better prior to the offseason. They had depth in their bullpen. But that did not help the team last season to make the postseason.
On the other hand, the offense was really one of the weakest in the league despite the presence of the 2022 AL MVP. The Yankees were looking for a couple of lefty sluggers, and they must be happy about what they got. Moreover, Juan Soto and Aaron Judge sure make the hitting situation look very solid.