Yankees would be World Series favorites with Manny Machado
The New York Yankees have the prospects and deep pockets to trade for Manny Machado if they choose. In doing so, they would be World Series favorites.
The Baltimore Orioles are terrible. The New York Yankees are one of a handful of teams which can actually win the World Series this fall. In short, the Orioles and Yankees make perfect trading partners, even if the two teams are both in the AL East.
Enter Manny Machado. Machado, 25, is scheduled to hit free agency after this season, and it’s unlikely the Orioles have the dough to keep him in Camden Yards.
If he hits the market, Machado will likely earn in excess of $25 million per year, perhaps on a 10-year deal. Most teams can’t dream of doling out that kind of scratch. The Yankees can do it for fun, especially with the bloated contracts of CC Sabathia, David Robertson and Brett Gardner coming off the books. Between the trio, New York will save $34 million.
On the other side, Baltimore is 13-28 and in desperate need of young talent to replenish what is quickly becoming an old team. Adam Jones, Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo range from mediocre to rapidly declining, while the pitching staff is a tire fire. The only young star outside of Machado is Jonathan Schoop, and he remains an unknown to some degree.
The Yankees are the rare team with unlimited funds and a tremendous farm system, making a trade for Machado smart for both sides. New York would get one of the top five hitters in the game and a Gold Glove player at either shortstop or third base. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman could deal a plethora of prospects and still have an elite system, especially with all the young talent already on the big-league club.
Ultimately, a trade could look something like Machado going to the Yankees for starting pitcher Justus Sheffield, infielder Gleyber Torres and two other mid-level prospects. The Orioles would immediately have a premier pitching prospect in Sheffield, a potential replacement for Machado in Torres, and two other high-end lottery tickets. You could do worse.
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Meanwhile, the Yankees would have strengthened the best lineup in baseball while adding to their defense. Machado could slide to third base and push Miguel Andujar to a utility role, all while making Brandon Drury completely expendable. New York would then have Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Machado in the middle of the order with Gary Sanchez and Co. hitting around them.
New York has the money and youngsters to make it happen. The time is now for the Bronx Bombers to make their move.