New Yankees Trade Rumors Reveal Mason Miller Interest Ahead of 2026 MLB Deadline

As the New York Yankees try to catch the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East coming out of the All-Star break, they might look to add an already strong area of their roster before the trade deadline.

Per Jon Heyman of the New York Post and MLB Network, the Yankees "love the idea" of potentially adding Mason Miller to join their bullpen if they could get him away from the San Diego Padres.

The Padres are always a fascinating deadline team because general manager A.J. Preller often takes an aggressive approach.

Miller was an addition San Diego made with the Athletics prior to last year's trade deadline in part due to Preller being very assertive. It wound up costing him Leo De Vries, who is now the No. 2 prospect in MLB.

Meanwhile, the Padres are in a position where it might be in their best interest to sell this summer. Their 48-48 record on the surface isn't bad and only 3.5 games out of a playoff spot, but they have lost 28 of 45 games since May 24.

Preller told reporters on Saturday the Padres plan to be "open-minded" leading up to the deadline, though he didn't sound as warm about the possibility of trading Miller.

"Since we made the deal last year, he's performed as good as you could want somebody to perform," Preller said. "We made the deal with the intention that Mason is going to be here for a long time. He's done an unbelievable job. And our intent is still the same as when we made the deal last year."

The Padres don't have to rush into a decision about Miller because he's under team control through 2029, so his value will remain high for a long time.

New York currently boasts the best bullpen ERA in MLB at 3.04. That group has been heavily reliant on Brent Headrick, Fernando Cruz, David Bednar and Paul Blackburn, so adding another high-leverage arm into the mix would help.

Miller is arguably the best reliever in the sport right now. The 27-year-old owns a 0.91 ERA, 72 strikeouts and 18 hits allowed in 39.2 innings this season, as well as an NL-leading 25 saves.

A deeper bullpen would also take pressure off of a Yankees rotation that lacks depth right now with Max Fried and Carlos Rodón currently on the injured list, and Gerrit Cole enduring struggles in nine starts since returning from Tommy John surgery.

Even with players like Fried, Rodón and Aaron Judge out of action right now, the Yankees' 54-42 record ranks second in the AL behind the Rays.