THE YANKEES AND THE TRADE DEADLINE

The Non-Waiver Trade Deadline is less the twenty-four hours away and as a Yankee fan, I want the Yankees to make a move here. I know there have been a lot of fans saying that we don’t need to make any big moves, but let’s be honest, no one is going to frown on improvement. And with ARod and Gardy out, and a new injury to Mark Teixeira, we could use another bat in our arsenal. People are suggesting it's time to bring up Russell Branyan or Jack Cust, but I'll tell you what I'm thinking:

Chase Headley: With ARod out, we could use a guy at third base. I like Chavez as much as the next guy but he is accident-prone. And Ramiro Pena has a questionable bat. Headley could take over at 3rd base until ARod comes back. The best thing about Headley is that he is also an outfielder. With the possibility of Nick Swisher not returning next season, Headley could take over right field. He is hitting .265, but Petco is a difficult place to hit. He’d be a nice fit into the Yankees line up and could come alive at a field like Yankee Stadium. The problem, of course is the price tag. It seems the Padres are determined to ask for a King’s Ransom and as Cashman has said on several occasions, the goal is to bring the spending budget down.

Ty Wigginton: definitely another option. With him being in the last year of his $8 million dollar contract, the price is right. He goes into free agency as of 2013 with a team option. His contract is unrestricted though so he wouldn’t necessarily play for the Yankees next season if he does choose to play. Wigginton could take over third or share the position with Eric Chavez until ARod comes back. He would be more of a “Band-Aid” fix instead of a long-term solution though and that worries me. Cashman has never seemed like a “Band-Aid” fix kind of guy.

Justin Morneau: Another guy I have had my eye on is Justin Morneau. He is only hitting .260. But he has 13 homers and 46 RBI’s. The biggest obstacle I see with Morneau is his contract. $19 million still left through to next season, no one sees this actually happening, but with Tex hurt and with no one thinking the Yankees would sign Ichiro with his $17 million dollar price tag (Except BYB), anything is possible.  Like I said about Chase Headley, Cashman is looking to lower the spending budget though. He has a .322 OBP, .457 SLG and .996 fielding percentage. Of course there is the fact that he is a first baseman. But with Teixeria getting pulled out tonight, he might be just what we need.

The truth is, the Yankees need a bat. Getting Ichiro was a great move by the organization. With Alex out now for six to eight weeks, we could always beef up a bit, we can get guys that could play third base but also be moved when they need to. Here comes the trade deadline...get ready.

--Erica Morales, BYB Writer



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