Yankees Trade Rumors: Manny Machado Drawing Interest, O's Prefer Move to NL Team
July 10, 2018
The New York Yankees are stepping up their pursuit of Baltimore Orioles shortstop Manny Machado, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported Monday.
Rosenthal wrote, "No deal appears close," and added the Orioles prefer to trade Machado to a National League team. However, the Yankees have enough depth and talent in their minor league farm system to make as strong an offer for the four-time All-Star as any other team.
Following the 2018 MLB draft, Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter listed the Yankees 10th in his minor league organizational rankings. Outfielder Estevan Florial and pitchers Justus Sheffield, Albert Abreu and Chance Adams all earned "Tier 1" status, which is reserved for prospects with All-Star potential.
Rosenthal wrote the Yankees are in need of an upgrade to their starting rotation but that the team's front office could look "toward more creative ways to improve the team" with a lack of elite starting pitchers available.
Assuming he'd move back to third base, Machado would at least address a weakness in the Yankees' lineup. New York is 24th in WAR at the hot corner (minus-0.6), per Baseball Reference.
Machado is batting .313 with 21 home runs and 60 RBI through 88 games. He's also a two-time Gold Glove winner at third base.
The Yankees have an added motivation to acquire Machado since they're one of the few teams with the financial means to meet what's likely to be his contract demands in free agency. If he enjoyed a strong second half in the Big Apple, he'd potentially be more likely to sign with the team this winter.