1 trade Yankees must make in wake of extended Aaron Judge injury absence

The New York Yankees will be without their superstar for about the next month+. Aaron Judge is out with a rib fracture that he suffered a few days ago. This is going to be a tough blow to the Yankees’ offense, but the good news is that he will be back, and the team has plenty of depth to replace him.

It’s unclear if the Yankees will be aggressive on the player market because of Judge’s extended absence. Because of the depth, the Yankees do not need to go out and try to replace that bat. First of all, you can’t; second, there is no need for the team to panic, as they are 0.5 games out of first place in the AL East.

Spencer Jones has been recalled to the big leagues. This was an obvious move with Judge, Jasson Dominguez, and Giancarlo Stanton all on the IL. Jones is only 4-24 on the season after a rough start to the year, but after playing well in AAA, it makes sense to give him another go. Because the team contains Jones, Dominguez, Cody Bellinger, Trent Grisham, and Max Schuemann, New York does not need to go out and grab another outfielder to plug in right field.

Instead, there is one player the Yankees should consider to be plugged into the lineup, but in the infield.

1 trade Yankees Must Make

The Yankees and Houston Astros should come to terms on a trade centered around Isaac Paredes. This trade makes perfect sense for both sides.

While the Astros are not completely out of it yet, only 5.5 games back of first place in the AL West, the Seattle Mariners are starting to run away with the division. The American League, in general, is not very good, so Houston will only sell players for the right price. This is where the Yankees come in.

The Yankees give the Astros an offer that they cannot refuse.

Yankees Receive: 

Isaac Peredes – 3B/INF

Astros Receive: 

Kaeden Kent – SS – Yankees No. 13 Prospect

This may seem like a slight overpay, but do the Yankees really need another shortstop with George Lombard Jr. and Dax Kilby expected to be the future of the infield? The answer is no, and while baseball runs in Kent’s blood (son of Jeff Kent), this is an offer the Astros can’t refuse as Houston gains a potential shortstop for the future.

Right now, Houston has Jeremy Pena, Nick Allen, Braden Shewmake, and Shay Whitcomb as options to play shortstop and third base with Paredes gone and Carlos Correa injured and out for the season. Yordan Alvarez is hitting like an MVP, and Christian Walker is also tearing it up. However, as things stand right now, the Astros don’t have a roster that scares anyone. They have a lot of recent postseason success, but getting rid of Paredes isn’t going to hurt them.

New York gets a third baseman who would serve as the primary starter, with Ryan McMahon earning some starts here and there. Third baseman Amed Rosario had a hot start to the season, but he is trending down and may not have the same impact later in the season. It may seem unusual to want to trade for a right-handed bat who gives off similar vibes to Rosario, but Rosario’s numbers haven’t produced winning, as he owns only 0.0 WAR.

Paredes can also play second base, first, and can obviously DH when needed. The Yankees will be adding a solid power hitter with eight home runs, 28 RBIs, 22 walks, and 10 doubles on the season. He is hitting .238 with a .731 OPS and 1.0 WAR. NY could plug him into the lineup, hitting anywhere from 4-7.

Paredes shows up in the postseason, also. He has a career .455 average and 1.045 OPS in four games. In those four games, he has five hits, one extra-base hit, and one walk.

When the team is fully healthy for a postseason run, having Paredes on your roster is a must. Paredes, Judge, Bellinger, Grisham, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Ben Rice, Austin Wells, Paul Goldschmidt, and Stanton is a deep lineup.

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