With starting pitching on Brian Cashman’s radar, one arm he should consider adding to the New York Yankees rotation is RHP Trevor Cahill.
The New York Yankees may be better off avoiding going all-in for a starting pitcher, but general manager Brian Cashman isn’t comfortable with the current rotation and may be looking to improve the unit.
Despite the interest, there are a couple aspects of the trade market for starters he must understand.
One, demand is at an all-time high. This makes borderline front line starters like Sonny Gray cost an arm and a leg and unquestionable aces like Justin Verlander and Yu Darvish even more expensive.
With New York looking to hold onto top prospects like Gleyber Torres, Clint Frazier, Miguel Andujar and more, a deal for a rotation anchor is almost a far-fetched fantasy. Just look at the Jose Quintana trade.
Nonetheless, there are cheaper options the Yankees can make to improve the rotation. Following the deal Cashman pulled off to arm his bullpen with Dellin Betances, Tommy Kahnle, David Robertson and Aroldis Chapman, a cheap improvement is more than suitable for the 2017 Yankees.
That’s why Trevor Cahill, who’s contract will expire when the dust settles on this season, should be on New York’s radar.
The 29-year-old right-hander is 4-3 on the season with a 3.14 ERA over 10 starts and has fanned 70 batters over 57.1 innings of work giving him the seventh-best strikeout rate (11.15) among Major League starters (min. 50 IP). In the National League, Cahill only trails Max Scherzer of the Washington Nationals and Robbie Ray of the Arizona Diamondbacks in that same category.
In his latest outing, Cahill allowed one earned run over 6.2 innings of work and picked up the victory against the San Francisco Giants on Sunday. While he hasn’t been as sharp on the road (0-3, 5.01 ERA) as he has been at home (4-0, 0.72 ERA), but his FIP of 3.22 and high strikeout rate suggest that it could be an insignificant coincidence.
Furthermore, Cahill’s ground ball rate of 56.8 percent is the eighth-highest among Major League starters with at least 50 innings pitched. Yankee Stadium, if he continues to utilize his sinker effectively, shouldn’t be a rocky transition.
Cahill will also be available on the cheap, as he was sidelined for seven weeks this season due to a right shoulder strain. His fastball velocity — harder in July (92.89 mph post injury) than it was in the month of the injury (92.35 in May) — shows us he is now 100 percent healthy, but Cashman could use the injury as leverage in negotiations.
His name may not be as attractive as others available this month, but this expiring contract fits New York’s budget. The rotation, which owns the ninth-best ERA (4.23) in the MLB, only needs a minimal improvement to stay in the hunt for what appears to be a realistic shot at postseason play. Especially with that bullpen.
If the Yankees decide not to go a cheap route, they’ll be stuck looking for answers behind Masahiro Tanaka, CC Sabathia, Luis Severino and Jordan Montgomery. It’s apparent that Chance Adams isn’t ready, so adding Cahill is nothing but a win-win.
