New York Yankees: Dellin Betances too important to championship aspirations to be traded

The New York Yankees must hold onto Dellin Betances. He is too important to their championship dreams.

Surprisingly, heading into the 2017 postseason the most consistent and reliable reliever for the New York Yankees the past four seasons was nowhere to be found, leaving a profound void in the dominant Yankees bullpen. There is no doubt to the impact that Dellin Betances has had on the Yankees till now and how much better he can get. The key for the Yankees will be to trust that the new manager that takes over, utilizes the bullpen properly and doesn’t overuse the dominant reliever.

Born in New York City, the 29-year-old flame throwing Dominican burst onto the scene in 2011 as the highly touted prospect that everyone throughout the tri-state area rambled about because of his large frame (6’9) and capability to blow batters away with an upper 90’s fastball. The icing on the cake was that he grew up just a train ride away in Brooklyn, NY where he caught the eye of Yankees scouts after dominating at Grand Street Campus HS.

Before Gary Sanchez, Luis Severino, and Aaron Judge, the Yankee catching waves providing a young new face of the franchise was Dellin Betances. The anticipation in the Bronx was indescribable, command issues prolonging the inevitable call up that finally happened in 2011 finally allowed the Yankees to see that a piece from the farm system can flourish and mature into a serviceable major leaguer.

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If Betances was his normal self this postseason there’s no telling where the Yankees would be. Having to worry about Betances aside from Tommy Kahnle, David Robertson, Chad Green, and Aroldis Chapman makes the Yanks close to unstoppable barring a bad start from their starters. That’s why it’s safe to say that Betances is untradeable. Not only does he have tremendous value because of his age but he also puts up lights out numbers for pennies on the dollar compared to what the games biggest relievers rack in.

Even the greatest reliever of all-time Mariano Rivera had some postseason hiccups of mortality, but he credited giving up a home run in Game 4 of the ALDS to the Cleveland Indians in 1997 as the key moment that helped transform his career. Betances needs this experience. Sometimes it’s losing that brings out the greatest attributes in a winner. In order for Betances to reach his fullest potential, a harsh dose of reality may be all he needed to take his game to another level.

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Certainly, that’s a scary thought for opposing hitters, as for Yankees fans there’s no question what heights this new look Yankees team can reach when they can count on their 6-9 flamethrower because If the Yankees want to replicate the “Dynasty Years” of 1996-2000 then best believe Betances is a crucial key to that puzzle moving forward.

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