The New York Yankees were in the mix of securing a rotation upgrade this mid-season trade deadline. However, a deal couldn’t come through due to stalled negotiations. Jack Flaherty was dumped at the last moment due to his troubling injury history and high asking price.
On the other hand, the New York Yankees were also in the mix to trade two-time CY Young pitcher Blake Snell. While the Giants decided to retain him, MLB insider Jon Heyman was puzzled with the Yankee front office’s lack of interest as he felt Snell could have been a massive cheap upgrade for the rest of the season.
Jon Heyman Questions Yankees Lack Of Interest In Blake Snell
After passing on Blake Snell during free agency due to a ridiculously high asking price, the New York Yankees had a chance to pursue him again at the midseason trade deadline. The two-time CY Young pitcher had a roller coaster season with the San Francisco Giants this year as he went down with an injury before returning with all guns blazing. However, the Yanks dropped the pursuit as the Giants weren’t very keen on giving up Snell. Having said that, Jon Heyman of the NY Post recently argued that Snell would have been a bargain if the Yanks had shown a little more guts at the trade deadline. He added that Snell and Luis Gil would have been powerful postseason pitchers.
Most importantly, Blake Snell’s trade was cheap as the Giants have already paid him this year’s salary in a $17 million signing bonus. The rest of the $5 million wasn’t something the New York Yankees couldn’t afford. Of course, the trade of prized prospects in exchange packages would hurt the Yanks farm system. However, for the championship purpose, trading Snell was worth the risk, opined Heyman. “I don’t know why the Yankees cared about that $30 million player option, he’s not picking it up,” Jon Heyman added. Notably, Blake Snell has only witnessed highs after the trade deadline passed. He threw his career-first no-hitter game on August 2 and dominated the Reds with an 11-strikeout outing. Hence, if Snell had transitioned into the Bronx, he and AL CY Young pitcher Gerrit Cole’s pair could have produced wonders in MLB.
Blake Snell Reveals The Truth About Free Agency Offers
Meanwhile, the New York Yankees were close to sign Blake Snell in free agency had the two-time CY Young pitcher lowered his asking price. The Yanks apparently wanted to settle for a $150 million six-year contract. But Snell wanted more, resulting in a fallout. Eventually, Snell couldn’t fetch a long term deal and settled for a two-year $62 million agreement with Giants.
Having said that, in a recent Foul Territory podcast, Blake Snell revealed that New York Yankees offer was not even close to the rumoured $150 million amount. Of course, there interest was significant. However, the deal’s worth was differed from what was mentioned in the media. Interestingly, Snell refused to reveal the exact details of New York Yankees free agency final offer.
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