While the New York Yankees are among the teams in play to trade for one-time Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star Bryan Reynolds, there seems to be a key obstacle in a potential deal.
The Yankees have been active this offseason and were a major player at the top of the MLB free agency market. The organization was able to retain the services of reigning American League MVP — and new team captain — Aaron Judge. Plus, they acquired one of the best pitchers on the market in former Giants and White Sox ace Carlos Rodon.
Yet, the defending AL East champions are far from done trying to improve their chances of winning World Series title 28 in 2023. Earlier this month, rumors began to swirl that star Pirates slugger Bryan Reynolds was up for grabs on the trade market and that the Yankees were reportedly eyeing him as a Judge backup plan.
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Well, New York is allegedly still in the running to land Reynolds, however, a new report claims they might not be able to meet the Pirates’ specific asking price.
New York Yankees may not have the pitching prospects to make a Bryan Reynolds trade
For a small-market organization like the Pirates, getting high-level prospects as the return in a Bryan Reynolds trade is a given. Top-shelf young talent on the farm system is something the Yankees have in abundance.
- Bryan Reynolds stats (2022): .262 AVG, .345 SLG, .461OBP, 27 HR, 62 RBI, 74 R
Anthony Volpe, Jasson Dominguez, and Oswald Peraza are elite prospects not only in their system but three of the best in the entire league. However, on Thursday MLB Network league insider Jon Morosi reported that the trio of star prospects is not what Pittsburgh is exactly looking for in a trade.
“Sources: Yankees among teams in contact with Pirates on Bryan Reynolds over recent weeks; one obstacle to trade is that Pittsburgh prefers starting pitchers to headline the return and top end of Yankees’ system is deeper in position players.”
– Report on potential Yankees trade for Bryan Reynolds
The Yankees have several pitchers ranked among the 10 best on MLB.com’s rankings of their minor league system. However, none of them are among the rundown of the 100 best in baseball.