The New York Yankees had already overhauled their infield ahead of this year's trade deadline, acquiring a new starting third baseman in Ryan McMahon and a new utility man in Amed Rosario. But there was one box that was left unchecked: New York still didn't have a viable alternative at shortstop to Anthony Volpe, which seemed untenable given his struggles in the field of late (and the fact that Aaron Boone has basically admitted to not feeling like he could give his young infielder a day off).
It took almost all the time he had before the 6 p.m. ET deadline, but Cashman finally remedied that situation on Thursday, acquiring speedster Jose Caballero from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for outfield prospect Everson Pereira and a player to be named later.
How about this? The Yankees have acquired Jose Caballero from the Rays for Everson Pereira and a PTBNL. Caballero will be pulled from Yankees-Rays game. He will only have to walk from the third base side to the first side to meet his new team. He’s tied for MLB lead with 34 SB.
— JackCurryYES (@JackCurryYES) July 31, 2025
Caballero isn't much with the bat, entering play on Thursday with an 81 OPS+ on the year. But he's a true burner, leading all of baseball with 34 stolen bases while bringing a much-needed dose of athleticism and aggression to New York. And most importantly, that athleticism translates to the defensive side as well, where he'll give the Yankees positional flexibility they simply haven't had all year.
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MLB trade grades: Yankees finally get viable alternative to Anthony Volpe
Caballero isn't going to come for Volpe's job any time soon. Again, he's not even an average hitter, and the Yankees have too much invested in Volpe's upside (which, yes, still does exist) to pull the plug so soon. But New York needed to have at least one other option at shortstop, if only to allow Volpe the ability to take a day off once in a while and reset. Rosario isn't capable of it physically at this point in his career, but Caballero very much is, sitting at +3 Outs Above Average on the year at the 6.
It may not be the big splash Yankees fans wanted to see, but it should certainly come in handy down the stretch. Caballero wreaks havoc and finds ways to add value even when he's not hitting, and he excels in so many of the areas in which New York has been lacking of late. That's more than worth the price the team paid to get this deal done.
Yankees grade: A-
Yankees fans have been waiting on Pereira to arrive for years now; he first made his MLB debut way back in 2023, if you can believe it. The physical tools are enticing, and when Pereira gets a hold of one, it goes an awfully long way. But he's 24 years old now, and while he's hitting well in Triple-A, there's no real reason to think that his plate approach is refined enough to tap into his power/speed combination at the Major League level. (He struck out 40 times in just 103 plate appearances in his first taste of the Show.)
He's still a worthy flier for the Rays, who have lots of infield depth but are starved for more outfield options. If they can figure out a mechanical change that works, the upside here is real. But right now, the overwhelming majority of evidence suggests that Pereira is a Quad-A player over the long haul.