Why the Pirates should do it: The Pirates are caught in no man’s land. They have some assets to sell, but should they sell them is the question. Last season, they bought and sold, trading Mark Melancon but adding Felipe Rivero, who’s a big part of their bullpen this year. They could go the same route with Tony Watson, who’s a pending free agent.
In this deal, they get two arms, one in Cessa that they can experiment with as to whether he should be a starter or reliever under the tutalige of pitching coach Ray Searage. In Perez, they get another big arm (6-foot-8) who throws 99 MPH in the lower minors. It’s a deal for both now and later.
Why the Yankees should do it: The Yankees need some late inning bullpen help. A big part of why they are in the slump they are in is because they can’t hold a lead. Watson can come in and help fill the void in getting the ball to Dellin Betances and Aroldis Chapman, considering the struggles of Tyler Clippard and the injury to Adam Warren.
The Yankees have other arms coming, so giving up Cessa and Perez shouldn’t hurt too badly. It’s not like they are giving up Chance Adams in this deal. You can make the argument they need another lefty other than Chasen Shreve, who’s having a good season, but is mostly unproven.