The struggling New York Yankees have been linked to some of the biggest names on the block leading up to the Aug. 1 MLB trade deadline. That includes the biggest chip, Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani.
For a team that entered Wednesday’s action in last place in the AL East with a 50-46 record, it makes perfect sense for New York to target roster upgrades.
However, there’s a financial component to all of this. It might be foreign to long-time Yankees fans in the big-market city. But New York could very well look to cut payroll ahead of the deadline.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, New York’s deadline dealings could act as a path to get under the highest luxury-tax threshold in baseball to avoid further financial penalties. Rosenthal cited sources close to the Yankees in his report.
New York currently boasts the second-highest payroll in baseball at $294.1 million. That’s $1.1 million over the final $293 million tier. As Rosenthal notes, this could force the Yankees to both buy and sell ahead of the deadline in order to get under that tier.
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New York Yankees could sell off some players ahead of MLB trade deadline
Despite losing 10 of 15 and five of six, the Yankees are not going to solely be sellers at the deadline. Instead, a combination of buying and selling will likely be in the cards for GM Brian Cashman and Co.
Impending MLB free agents such as starter Luis Severino and reliever Wandy Peralta as well as outfielders Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Harrison Bader could potentially be on the move.
According to Rosenthal, there’s also a possibility that the Yankees move second baseman Gleyber Torres and his salary to make room for youngster Oswald Peraza in the starting lineup.
What we do know is that these are not the Yankees of yesteryear. Once legendary owner George Steinbrenner passed away back in 2010, the organization took a more cost-effective approach. That could be the name of the game with roughly two weeks until the 2023 MLB trade deadline.