Yankees Linked to Potential Trade for Star Pitcher
By Jovan Alford
Outside of the Juan Soto trade in December, the New York Yankees have had a quiet offseason. However, we should expect that to change as we get close to spring training next month.
SNY.tv’s Andy Martino reported earlier this week that New York is “planning an active January” and expected to make at least one impactful addition to their starting rotation before spring training.
Could that impactful addition be Chicago White Sox ace Dylan Cease?
Yankees Rumors: New York Connected To Another Starter
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported Thursday night that the Yankees are among the teams that have expressed “sincere interest” in acquiring Cease from the White Sox.
It is not the first time we’ve heard Cease mentioned in trade talks this offseason. The Reds inquired about Cease’s availability, and the White Sox asked for four top minor-league prospects in return, according to Bruce Levine of 670 The Score.
The asking price for Sox pitcher Dylan Cease is very high ,and should be for two yrs control and $8 mil-contract.The Reds were asked for 4 top prospects including RHP Rhett Lowder and RHP Chase Petty. #9 and #11 position prospects as well.Sox will get more as market shakes out.
— Bruce Levine (@MLBBruceLevine) December 6, 2023
The Yankees haven’t made a splash yet for a pitcher despite being connected to Cease, Jordan Montgomery, and Blake Snell. Last season, Cease struggled in the Windy City as he had a 4.58 and 214 strikeouts over 33 starts (career-high).
However, the 29-year-old starting pitcher has a career 3.83 ERA and finished second in AL Cy Young voting after a great 2022 season (14-8, 2.20 ERA).
With that being said, if you are the Yankees, how much are you willing to give up for Cease; who would be an excellent addition?
If you look at New York’s Top 30 prospects on MLBPipeline.com, it’s hard to see them giving up Jasson Dominguez (2nd) or Austin Wells (7th), who made their major league debuts this past season. However, they have a few pitching prospects that could interest the White Sox, who are in obvious rebuild mode.
Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see if the Yanks pursue Cease or decide to grab another free-agent starting pitcher on the market. While fans wait to see what the team does, they can think about placing a wager on FanDuel Sportsbook as New York is the favorite to win the AL East crown.
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