New York Yankees trade rumors link the team to the Oakland Athletics and Sonny Gray. The Yankees are negotiating with the Athletics to acquire Gray before the MLB trade deadline and have already received a counter-offer from the franchise. This could be a huge deal for the Yankees and how they could possibly win the American League East this year.
This could be huge for the Wild Card race as well, with the Seattle Mariners pressing hard to catch up to the Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays. The Mariners also pulled off a trade on July 20 acquiring pitching help from the Miami Marlins.
The biggest weakness on the roster in New York is the starting rotation, raising a lot of questions about how the team could do in the postseason. Acquiring a starting pitcher like Sonny Gray could certainly shift the tide in the American League.
What has Sonny Gray done for the Oakland Athletics?
Gray spent part of the season on the disabled list, but has bounced back very nicely for the A’s. In 15 starts and 91 innings pitched this season, Sonny Gray is 6-4 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.176 WHIP. Over his five-year career with the Oakland Athletics, Gray has appeared in 113 games (111 starts), posting a 44-35 record, a 3.45 ERA, and a 1.20 WHIP. Those are numbers any franchise would like to have.
One of the reasons these New York Yankees trade rumors would make sense for the team is that Sonny Gray comes with a lot of team control.
He has two more arbitration years before he will hit free agency, giving a new team at least 2 ½ seasons of work from him. For the 2017 MLB season, Gray is slated to earn roughly $3.6 million from the Athletics.
What do the Yankees have to give up in a deal for Gray?
When it comes to starting pitchers that are available on the trade market, Sonny Gray might be the best one getting shopped around.
This underscores just how expensive it will be for another team to acquire him. This means the Yankees are going to have to give up at least several top prospects in any deal. Could this mean Gleyber Torres, Clint Frazier, and/or Jorge Mateo will soon be heading to the West Coast? That could steal back the headlines that Robinson Cano controlled.
There are limited details revealed about what the Oakland Athletics have asked for from the Yankees. It’s safe to assume that it is an expensive package and that it might also include All-Star first baseman Yonder Alfonso. Will these New York Yankees trade rumors lead to a deal that helps the team surpass the Boston Red Sox in sheer talent?
