COULD THE YANKEES UPGRADE THEIR PITCHING BY TRADING BEN HESS?

Interesting, but you're asking me, for who and... who's Ben Hess again? I get it.

 

Yankees fans and the media that follow them are constantly exploring ways to improve the team’s competitiveness. Offensively, the Yankees have been outstanding, and last night’s game showcased strong pitching performances from Max Fried and Luke Weaver. Still, there's a growing concern that the Yankees' pitching staff won't hold up as the season progresses. Relying on offensive firepower alone isn't sustainable—it’s just the reality.

Take Jazz Chisholm, for example. He’s now sidelined for 4–6 weeks, a reminder of how quickly things can change. Aaron Judge is having a phenomenal season, and while I admire what he's doing, it's hard to believe he can maintain this level of production all year long. My point is sooner, or later things break down and that's why pitching is so important.

That brings us to the idea of adding pitching depth. Tyler Anderson of the Los Angeles Angels is reportedly on the trade block. A veteran lefty with a 2.67 ERA over six starts, Anderson has been impressive, but since he's entering free agency after the season, he likely wouldn’t require a major prospect haul in return.

The possibility of an Anderson trade is real—MLB Network’s Greg Amsinger even listed him among the top trade candidates this year. If the Yankees pursue a starting pitcher, they might need to part with some decent prospects. ESPN recently discussed possible trade assets and highlighted Ben Hess, the Yankees' first-round pick last year, as a potential chip. David Schoenfield wrote:

“No Gerrit Cole. Luis Gil is working his way back from a lat issue. Carlos Carrasco and Marcus Stroman haven’t been reliable. Clarke Schmidt just returned, but the rotation could definitely use a boost. Trading top prospect George Lombard Jr. seems unlikely, and Spencer Jones' value has dipped. So, a couple of pitchers make more sense. Warren has major league experience and could help right away. Hess, though further from the majors, may offer more upside.”

In 2021, Hess was recognized as Illinois' top high school baseball prospect, but instead of turning pro, he chose to play for Alabama. Injuries sidelined him at times during his first two collegiate seasons, but he remained healthy throughout 2024, recording a 5.80 ERA while striking out 35 percent of opposing batters. His talent earned him a place in Crimson Tide history as the program’s third-ever first-round draft pick, joining Joe Vitiello and Taylor Tankersley. Selected 26th overall, he secured a $2,747,500 signing bonus and is set to make his professional debut this season.

It’s an intriguing scenario, but personally, I just don’t see it happening.

IT'S EVERYONE'S JOB TO HIT, NOT JUST SOTO & JUDGE

Source: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

I'm so tired of the freeloading members of this 2024 Yankee team. Every night it is either the Juan Soto show or the Aaron Judge show or a combo of both. And the rest of the team just swings and misses, hits into double plays and essentially freeloads off the Soto-Judge party. And if Soto or Judge don't hit, the Yankees simply lose and sometimes these losses are to terrible teams, which gets them no closer to a championship. It's everyone's job to hit, not just Soto and Judge.

"Going into the weekend, Soto had hit six homers in his past seven games, seven in his last 15 and 13 in his last 30. Say he keeps up that pace for the next 30 games and plays in every game. That gets him to 47 with 10 games left in the regular season, one in which the Yankees will likely be grinding against the Orioles until the very end to see who’s going to end up winning the AL East," report MLB.com.

Source: CNN

But what if Soto doesn't go on that tear? Like why is it on him? How about the rest of the team who passes off the work to Soto and his teammate Judge? As MLB.com reported about a month ago when the Yankee offense hit all time low and Brian Cashman visited the team, “It’s been a struggle, obviously,” Cashman said. “Thankfully, we got out of the gates really strong. Hopefully that cushion will allow us to work through this, hopefully sooner than later, because it’s gone on long enough. It’s been a tough stretch for us.” 

Seriously, that's a cop out. How about letting Oswaldo Cabrera play more consistently and let DJ LeMahieu ride the bench? Why not let Oswald Peraza actually get some quality playing time and let Gleyber Torres sit? And what about Jasson Dominguez? He's lighting up in Triple A, isn't he ready again for primetime? 

Source: NJ.com

“I kind of knew what I needed to do. I just couldn’t figure out how to do it,” LeMahieu said Thursday (8/8) before he was set to bat eighth and start at first base against Angels lefty Tyler Anderson. “But I think taking a couple days off gave me a little different perspective. Able to look at a few things more closely," reported The New York Post. 

And there's this take back in late July from the Post, "Some strong at-bats have not translated into enough strong results. Ben Rice’s average is down to .218. DJ LeMahieu is 0-for-his-last-17. Alex Verdugo is in a 3-for-35 rut." Now we have the Yankees getting clobbered 12-2 by the bottom-feeder White Sox this week, and Tigers are putting on show against them in front of their home crowd in Detroit with Carlos Rodon on the mound and the bats silent. 

At the end of the day, it's every pitcher's job to pitch, every fielder's job to field and every hitter's job to hit. Don't throw all of the work onto one or two players in each of those categories. If the Yankees are going to win convincingly and be a dominant force in the playoffs, everyone needs to contribute. No more cop outs. No more excuses. You either want it and give it your all or you don't. What's it going to be?

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof