Another day, another trade rumor that actually makes way too much sense for the Yankees—who, at this point, have Max Fried impersonating a rotation ace surrounded by a collection of duct-taped arms and question marks.
The need for the Yankees to strengthen their starting pitching is beyond obvious. So, why not keep floating these intriguing trade proposals out there? Who knows, maybe someone in the Yankees’ front office will stumble across one of them—because let’s face it, they’re certainly not busy making smart baseball decisions lately.
Enter Conor Liguori of Athlon Sports, who recently suggested the Yankees pursue a deal with the Dodgers. His idea? Send right-hander Landon Knack to the Bronx in exchange for shortstop Roderick Arias, the Yankees’ No. 6 prospect, and first baseman T.J. Rumfield.
As Liguori explains, "In this trade, the Dodgers remain patient with developing one of the Yankees’ top prospects, Arias, whose projected ETA to the MLB level is 2027. The 20-year-old began 2025 at Single-A Tampa and posted a .728 OPS with 13 home runs and 37 steals at the same level last season. Rumfield has flashed legit power, already launching three home runs with a .580 slugging percentage in just 14 games for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this year.”
And hey, this isn't the first time smart, realistic pitching targets have come up—Bobby Miller and even Miles Mikolas have been tossed into the rumor mill lately. These aren’t pie-in-the-sky fantasies; they’re logical moves the Yankees should be considering.
Fans are tired. The team’s stagnation is infuriating. A deal like this won’t solve every problem—but it’s a heck of a lot better than waiting around for the front office to stop twiddling their thumbs.
