MLB Trade Rumors: 5 Reasons New York Yankees Shouldn't Trade for Ubaldo Jimenez

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According to George King of The New York Post, the New York Yankees are among 17 teams who scouted the most recent start of Colorado Rockies pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez. In turn, the Rockies have been scouting several Yankee minor leaguers, fueling speculation that a trade may be in the works between the two sides.

Since failing to sign Cliff Lee this offseason, it has been suggested that starting pitching is the Yankees’ Achilles’ heel. The Yankee rotation has held up and persevered for the most part, however, raising questions of whether adding another starter is truly necessary. Outside of CC Sabathia, the Yanks lack a big-time starter who can be counted upon to win important games.

Although Jimenez obviously has the physical tools to be an ace, and has shown he can be in the past, he seems to have lost his way in Colorado. It’s possible that a change of scenery may be just what the doctor ordered for Jimenez’s career, but trading for him certainly wouldn’t come without some risk for the Yankees.

Here are the top five reasons why trading for Ubaldo Jimenez is a bad idea for the New York Yankees.

Jimenez Has Struggled Since Last Season

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Ubaldo Jimenez got off to an absolutely sizzling start last season, posting a 15-1 record with a 2.20 ERA prior to the All-Star break. For all intents and purposes, it seemed as though Jimenez was the runaway choice for the Cy Young Award. Something changed, though, as Jimenez proceeded to go 4-7 with a 3.80 ERA for the remainder of the season. Perhaps the change could be attributed to Jimenez being unable to match the inhuman pace he set for himself, but there seems to be more to it.

Jimenez’s second-half struggles have leaked into this season and haven’t really shown any signs of stopping. He currently has a record of just 5-8 with a 4.08 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. The last time Jimenez posted peripherals that poor was during his rookie season in 2007. While Jimenez may still be perceived as an ace by some, he certainly hasn’t lived up to that billing over the past year.

The biggest indictment of Jimenez has to be the fact that the Rockies are willing to give up on him already. He is a 27-year-old fireballer coming off a season in which he won 19 games and finished third in the National League Cy Young Award race. Despite that, Colorado seems poised to send Jimenez to the highest bidder. It’s clear that the Rockies think Jimenez is broken and whether or not the Yankees can fix him is a huge question mark.

The Bronx May Prove To Be Too Much for Jimenez

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As is often the case in sports, a once-great player who has hit the skids needs nothing more than a change of scenery to rekindle his old magic. While this may also be true for Ubaldo Jimenez, I have a hard time believing New York is the place to do it. The New York media and fanbase have chewed up and spit out many pitchers over the years, with Javier Vazquez being the most obvious and recent case. In fact, it happened to him twice.

Seeing as the Bronx Bombers are almost assuredly going to have to give up one or more of their top prospects—including Jesus Montero, Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos—Jimenez will have a huge amount of pressure on his shoulders from the second he toes the rubber in Yankee Stadium. As a pitcher who has struggled mightily since the second half of last season, Jimenez will have to reach incredibly unrealistic expectations as a Yankee.

Of course, it’s quite possible that there is some underlying reason why he has struggled in Colorado and a move to any locale, even New York, could benefit him. Or, there may be some sort of mechanical problem that has gone unnoticed by the Colorado coaching staff. If that is the case, Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild may be able to make the necessary adjustments. The most likely issue, however, is a fragile psyche, and that will only be exacerbated under the bright lights in New York.

Jimenez Hasn’t Been a Good Playoff Performer

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Since about 1995, each every move the Yankees have made has been with an eye toward the playoffs. This year is no different than the 16 that preceded it, as the Yanks are in great position to qualify for the postseason once again. Once the playoffs begin, it is essentially a clean slate for every player on the roster as the media and fans take a “what have you done for me lately” approach.

For a player who has struggled as much as Ubaldo Jimenez, this could be viewed as a positive. All of his issues over the past season would certainly be forgotten if he could come up huge on baseball’s biggest stage. Therein lies the problem, though, as Jimenez hasn’t been so successful in a limited amount of postseason starts over the course of his young career.

In five career playoff starts, Jimenez is 0-2 with a 3.54 ERA and a bloated 1.50 WHIP. Obviously this is a very small sample size, but there are some troubling trends among those five starts.

For one, Jimenez has gone further than six innings in just one of his five playoff starts. That is clearly a huge issue, as ace-caliber pitchers need to go the distance, or close to it, come playoff time. Also, his postseason walk rate is quite alarming with over five walks per nine innings pitched. In his most recent playoff series against the Philadelphia Phillies in 2009, Jimenez got battered in two starts to the tune of a 5.25 ERA. Perhaps a move to New York would turn his playoff fortunes around, but his past issues suggest otherwise.

The Yanks May Have To Give Up Top Pitching Prospects

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According to a recent tweet by Jon Heyman of SI.com, the Colorado Rockies are balking at New York’s top prospect, catcher Jesus Montero, being the centerpiece of a deal for Ubaldo Jimenez. This is quite interesting since Montero was nearly enough to pry Cliff Lee from the Seattle Mariners last season. With that in mind, the Yanks would probably have to give up one of their top two pitching prospects in Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos.

If the Yankees have to give up one of those pitchers in addition to Montero, that seems like altogether too much. While Betances and Banuelos may still be a couple years away from reaching the majors, the Yankee brass clearly thinks that they can be top-of-the-rotation starters in the near future. When you consider that, it begs the question of whether it’s truly worth giving one of them up for a pitcher who may be unable to recapture his past glory.

It seems like the Rockies are going about this process in a completely backwards way. Between the two teams, the Yankees should hold all the cards. They’re already very much in the playoff race and may not even need to add another pitcher. Meanwhile, the Rockies are in possession of an asset who is losing value with each passing day. If they truly want the Yankees to play ball and become a serious contender for Jimenez’s services, they can’t be too picky.

Most teams would be ecstatic to get their hands on Montero, and with the Yankees seemingly willing to give him up, the Rockies may need to accept him as a centerpiece if they hope to move Jimenez.

The Re-Emergence of Phil Hughes

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Prior to the return of Phil Hughes from the disabled list last week, the Yankees pitching rotation had a few question marks. Sure CC Sabathia is bona fide ace, but A.J. Burnett and Freddy Garcia are a bit inconsistent, and Bartolo Colon hasn’t quite been the same since his hamstring pull. After two solid starts, Hughes, an 18-game winner last season, looks to be back in form and has helped bring some stability to the Yankee rotation.

Of course, it’s possible that his arm issues could resurface at any time, but as the old adage goes, adding Hughes can be “as good as a trade” for the Yanks. When Hughes is right, he’s a perfectly capable No. 2 in the rotation behind Sabathia. This then allows Burnett and Colon to slide down in the rotation, making the staff much more well rounded.

Despite Hughes’ return, the Yanks could still benefit from another starter, but there are definitely some cheaper options out there than Ubaldo Jimenez.

Pitchers like Ryan Dempster and Brett Myers have struggled this season, much like Jimenez, but wouldn’t cost the Yankees an arm and a leg in a potential trade. Either one of them would make a fine No. 4 starter and wouldn’t involve much risk from New York’s perspective.

Although I wouldn’t totally rule out a trade for Jimenez, I think the Rockies need to make some concessions before the Yankees start to seriously consider dealing for him. If the asking price comes down, then Jimenez may be worth the risk. Otherwise, the Yanks will probably be better off exploring other options.