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Trade options the New York Yankees could pursue for the rotation

MLB: Chicago White Sox at Cleveland Indians
Aug 16, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Jose Quintana (62) reacts in the third inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Michael Wacha

At one point in November, Ken Rosenthal reported that the St. Louis Cardinals floated right-hander Michael Wacha’s name in trade talks but was skeptical as the talks were just to assess Wacha’s value.

Given his injury past, however, a huge package isn’t expected for the 2015 All-Star, a year in which the righty went 17-7 and maintained a 3.38 ERA over 181 innings of work.[sc name=”Fanly Small” ]

Unfortunately, he has dealt with periodic issues with his right shoulder from as early as 2014 and had much to do with his  5.09 ERA over 138innings in 2016.

Although there was no major dip in his strikeouts per nine, his hit rate leaped from eight to 10.4.

Injury question marks could actually benefit the Yankees in this situation, as they won’t have to part with any of their highly touted youngsters while getting a pitcher with playoff experience just 25-years-old with three seasons of team control.

It could, or at least should be, your classic case of low risk, high reward because at his best, he’s the ideal number two but it just doesn’t make sense for the Yankees to give up an arm and a leg for Wacha.

[sc name=”Yankees Link Slideshow” link=”https://elitesportsny.com/2016/12/06/trade-options-new-york-yankees-pursue-rotation/4/” text=”Shelby Miller” ] [sc name=”Yankees Center” ]
Christian Kouroupakis
Christian Kouroupakis

Christian Kouroupakis covers the New York Yankees and is the Editorial Director for ESNY. Interact with him and view his daily work by “liking” his facebook page and follow him on Twitter. All statistics are courtesy of Baseball Reference.com unless otherwise noted. Don’t hesitate to shoot him an email with any questions, criticisms, or concerns.