Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports
New information on why the New York Yankees were unable to complete a big trade for one of the best pitchers available before the trade deadline may be cause for concern.
The 2024 MLB trade deadline is in the rearview and the Yankees organization is left with some major questions. While they made a notable move for versatile one-time All-Star Jazz Chisholm, they did not achieve the top goal. And that was to land another front-line starter.
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Top rivals the Baltimore Orioles made several trades before Tuesday, including for starters Zach Eflin and Trevor Rogers. While the two teams will likely be in a hotly contested fight for the division down the stretch, Yankees brass are going to wonder if this slumping team is good enough to make a serious World Series run.
If they had landed either All-Star Garrett Crochet or veteran Jack Flaherty, their chances would have been greatly improved. However, Crochet is still in Chicago and Flaherty went to National League powerhouse the Los Angeles Dodgers.
New York was considered a serious contender for both but still came up short. Well, on Wednesday why they were never close to making a deal on either pitcher was revealed and it’s not a great sign for the Yanks farm system.
First, New York Post MLB insider Jon Heyman claimed “Yankees were told several days ago they ‘don’t match up’ for Crochet. That’s understandable since the White Sox reportedly had a very high asking price for the pitcher and he was never traded.
However, on Wednesday New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told reporters that while he was very high on Flaherty, he “had difficulty matching up with the Tigers” on a deal.
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Not having the chips that neither the White Sox nor Tigers wanted doesn’t send a good message about the depth of the Yankees’ farm system. Jasson Dominguez and Spencer Jones are both respected prospects around baseball. But it seems like passed them New York doesn’t have much else.
That could be problematic in the future if they want to try and make a blockbuster trade for a big player that could be the final piece in a title team. It looks like the organization might be stuck with this current team. And it put even more pressure on the front office to make sure they re-sign Juan Soto this winter.