The New York Yankees still need help in the bullpen. New York was once linked to superstar closer Josh Hader, but no deal was reached. The Houston Astros signed a five-time All-Star to a lucrative contract. The Yankees have been linked to a number of relievers this winter, and they recently acquired Caleb Ferguson in a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but they could still need another arm or two.
Milwaukee Brewers superstar Devin Williams is one intriguing player that might be traded, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. “The Brewers are still the team to watch in the trade market, especially after trading (Corbin Burnes). Devin Williams and Willy Adames are the two major Milwaukee players that might still be traded, with Adames — who is set to become a free agency at the end of the season — looking the most likely.
“Williams, who won the 2023 Trevor Hoffman Award as the NL’s top reliever, is under club control through the end of 2025, but with young fireballer Abner Uribe waiting in the wings to take over the closer’s job, the Brewers could trade Williams to address other areas of need on the roster.”
New York was recently mentioned as a possible landing spot for Williams, and a trade would make a lot of sense. He has been an All-Star for the previous two years with Milwaukee and has developed into one of baseball’s best relievers. Williams has a career 1.89 ERA in 219 total appearances over the last five seasons and has not had an ERA higher than 2.00 in a season since 2021. New York could use another reliever. Why not try to acquire one of the best?
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Yankees Star Prospect Was Sought in Trade Talks.
The New York Yankees boast one of the best-stocked farm systems in Major League Baseball. Baseball America and ESPN recently named it among baseball’s top ten. One of the system’s and baseball’s top prospects is an outfielder listed in the Top 100 by MLB Pipeline. Because of that, outfielder Spencer Jones — who might one day be the Yankees’ starting center fielder — was sought as part of the return in three separate trades that the Yankees either executed or passed up, according to the New York Post.
The Padres were interested in Jones during early trade talks to acquire outfielder Juan Soto, according to the Post. Ultimately, the Yankees did not have to give up Jones. Instead, the Yankees acquired Soto and outfielder Trent Grisham for five players: catcher Kyle Higashioka, pitchers Michael King, Randy Vásquez, Jhony Brito, and Drew Thorpe. However, the Padres were not the only team interested in acquiring Jones through trade.
According to the Post, the Yankees were interested in signing Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes. His old team, the Milwaukee Brewers, coveted Jones so much that it was assumed he would be the key prospect in a transaction that never materialized. The deal did not go through, and Burnes ended up with the Yankees’ AL East opponent,
Third, the Yankees expressed interest in obtaining Chicago White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease. The White Sox are thought to be holding out for the greatest possible package. According to the Post, the White Sox also considered Jones as a major prospect in the deal. Cease is still with the White Sox for now. That presumably reflects the Yankees’ feelings toward Jones, who could be joining the team soon. Last year, Jones reached Double-A Somerset and hit.267/.336/.444/.780 with 16 home runs, 66 RBI, 29 doubles, and four triples.
