The New York Yankees have already answered one World Series roster loss with a slew of additions and they could be in line for another.
After losing in this past World Series, the Yankees saw superstar Juan Soto take a record-breaking contract with the New York Mets and answered by adding several All-Star veterans to their own roster in kind.
The team entered spring training with good reason for optimism about a return to October baseball. But then persistent injuries popped up for veterans DJ LeMahieu and Giancarlo Stanton and starter Luis Gil was ruled out for the beginning of the season as well.
Now the Yankees have lost Gerrit Cole to season-ending Tommy John surgery, and it seems they will have little choice but to bring in another external addition if they hope to return to the fall classic. But that addition will probably have to wait a few months.
“It’s clear the Yankees need more starting pitching depth to save their season, but due to the timing of these injuries, they have little choice but to go with the arms they have internally and wait until the July 31 trade deadline to make a significant outside addition,” Deesha Thosar wrote for Fox Sports.
As the Yankees evaluate their midseason trade options, it seems the Miami Marlins’ Sandy Alcántara will be a top target to replace Cole. After signing a $56 million contract in 2021, he’s owed $17.3 million for both 2025 and 2026, with a club option for 2027, making him relatively cheap if he can return to his 2022 Cy Young Award form.
And Thosar noted that he’s all but assured to be on his way out of Miami by the deadline with a premium trade price tag attached.
“Alcántara, one of the only recognizable names left on the Marlins roster, is expected to be out of Miami by the time the NFL preseason starts,” she wrote. “Going for Alcántara would cost the Yankees two of their top five prospects, and that package would likely have to include (Jasson) Domínguez and top outfield prospect Spencer Jones or No. 2 overall prospect George Lombard Jr.”
With Domínguez all but set to open the 2025 season as the Yankees’ everyday left fielder, that cost might be too much to bear. As the team evaluates the need to replace Cole in the first half of the season, though, perhaps they’ll see little alternative.
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