Yankees Trade Rumors: All the Hottest Chatter Heading into the Deadline

The New York Yankees find themselves in a unique situation as the 2012 MLB trade deadline rapidly approaches.

With several players coming off the disabled list in the weeks and months ahead, New York has the ability to fill whatever needs it has from within.

Thanks to a deep bench and a bullpen that has recovered nicely from the loss of Mariano Rivera, the Yanks should be able to piece it together the rest of the way until their big-name players come back.

Nevertheless, there are still some rumors out there that have the Bombers possibly interested in making a move.

Let's take a look at all the latest buzz around the Yankees as the trade deadline nears.

Rafael Betancourt

Even with the return of Joba Chamberlain imminent, the Bombers are still looking for bullpen help.

According to Troy Renck of the Denver Post, New York is one of several teams interested in the right-handed reliever, whose contract situation is also attractive:

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Rafael Betancourt is attracting varying degrees of interest from the Orioles, Yankees and Athletics. The Red Sox had interest earlier this month.

Betancourt is under contract next year with a mutual option for 2014.

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Betancourt would be a closer on most teams, but the Bombers already have that role filled with Rafael Soriano. And, of course, David Robertson will remain as the team's setup man, so there's no room there.

Most likely, Betancourt would be used in the seventh inning instead. Such an option for manager Joe Girardi would further improve the Yanks' elite bullpen.

Chase Headley

Chase Headley's name has been floated around the last few weeks, but it doesn't look like the Bombers will be interested in dealing for the San Diego Padres third baseman. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports explains why:

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The list includes Chase Headley (in fact, in terms of desirability it may be headed by Headley, though he remains a long shot).

Anyway, after Headley, who is thought of as a long shot since the Yankees don't want to part with top prospects, especially for a need of minor importance.

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As Heyman clearly spells out, the price for Headley will be high, and the Bombers simply don't need his services that bad. Sure, he'd be a power upgrade over what the Yankees have now (Eric Chavez and Jayson Nix), but A-Rod will be back soon, and there's no sense in giving up top-notch prospects for such a short rental.

The silver lining in a deal for Headley is the fact that he's under contract past this season. Still, it's unlikely the Bombers will be trading for him unless the price comes down significantly.

But the list for possible third basemen doesn't end at Headley. Move on over to the next slide to see which infielders the Bombers are targeting also.

Other Third Base Options

According to the report from Heyman mentioned in the slide before, the Yankees also have other targets that won't cost them as much:

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Anyway, after Headley, who is thought of as a long shot since the Yankees don't want to part with top prospects, especially for a need of minor importance. Here are some others thought to be on the list (there's probably more): Willie Bloomquist, Brendan Ryan, Yunel Escobar, Chone Figgins, Ty Wigginton, Jose Lopez and Cody Ransom.

Mark Reynolds may be on the list, too, but that's a long shot. Scott Rolen may be, too, but he's pretty fragile these days. Stephen Drew is thought to be too expensive in terms of prospects. Marco Scutaro came off when he went in trade to San Francisco.

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That's a pretty long list, but again, to acquire any of these players for a one-month rental wouldn't make much sense. None of these options are much better, if at all, than the combination of Chavez and Nix.

And if they are, it simply isn't worth the amount of prospects New York would have to unload.

In the end, the Yanks would be wise to just hold onto the platoon they have now and wait until A-Rod returns.