Fansided

One future Yankee on each MLB team

By Adam Strangis

NEW YORK, NY - JULY 29: General view of a wall displaying retired New York Yankees numbers which is seen during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium on July 29, 2017 in the Bronx borough of New York City. The Yankees defeated the Rays 5-4. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***
NEW YORK, NY - JULY 29: General view of a wall displaying retired New York Yankees numbers which is seen during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium on July 29, 2017 in the Bronx borough of New York City. The Yankees defeated the Rays 5-4. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** /
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CLEVELAND, OH – APRIL 30: Cleveland Indians Starting pitcher Trevor Bauer (47) delivers a pitch to the plate during the second inning of the Major League Baseball game between the Texas Rangers and Cleveland Indians on April 30, 2018, at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH – APRIL 30: Cleveland Indians Starting pitcher Trevor Bauer (47) delivers a pitch to the plate during the second inning of the Major League Baseball game between the Texas Rangers and Cleveland Indians on April 30, 2018, at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Cleveland Indians – Trevor Bauer, Starting Pitcher

Admittedly, this one is a bit far-fetched. Bauer is in the middle of a breakout season with an ERA of 2.45 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and a 31.6 strikeout rate. These would all represent career high water marks by significant margins and the sky looks to be the limit for the 25 year old former third overall pick. So why in the world would the Indians consider trading Bauer or letting him walk in free agency? The Yankees could potentially either try to pry him away(highly unlikely) or just wait until he needs a monster contract.

Cleveland already has a few players signed to longer term deals. Corey Kluber, Jason Kipnis, Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Ramirez and Carlos Carrasco are already locked in through 2020. In fact, the Indians have over $80 million in salary commitments for the 2020 season. The current payroll is about $111 million and it won’t be long before Francisco Lindor will surely be asking for more money than he’s due in arbitration. If the Indians are already paying all these players, is there enough room to add in Bauer on top of that and still build quality depth? It’s a question that they might need to answer at some point over the next couple seasons. A starting pitcher of Bauer’s quality would fetch a mint on the open market in trades. The Yankees would be as well positioned as any team to 1. make a deal and 2. pay Bauer a fat extension. There’s a possibility that the young stud could pitch his way out of Cleveland.

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