In a blockbuster move with the reigning National League MVP, the New York Yankees struck first thing in the morning. Giancarlo Stanton is the best power hitter in the last couple of years in the National League. How did this move happen? How did the Yankees get a power hitting talent in Stanton to pair with Aaron Judge? What do the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants do since they missed out on Stanton? So many questions, but here is the quick and dirty analysis of a trade that happened very quickly once the Yankees knew they had a chance to at landing Stanton.
Viewpoint: Giancarlo Stanton
Needless to say, Stanton was done with teams looking to rebound and rebuild,. He gave a list of four teams that are definitely looking to reload. Stanton earlier this week stated that he would not waive his complete no-trade clause to go to either the Giants or Cardinals. Remember back in 2014 when Stanton signed this mega deal, the no-trade clause was added because of the Miami Marlins history of tearing down and rebuilding every eight to ten years. The protection he got with the no-trade clause was to ensure that he had power over where he was traded regardless of who gave the Marlins the best deal.
On Saturday, the Yankees struck while the iron was hot. They knew that the Marlins had to get a deal done fast. Now Stanton can be viewed as kind of leading on the Cardinals and Giants. Maybe he could have given his list of four teams he would accept a trade to sooner. But in Stanton’s defense, this is the exact reason why there is a full no-trade clause in his contract. I am all for the player looking out for their best interest and this was a textbook case of Stanton looking out for himself. This may make some people think of him being selfish, but if we were superstar power hitters in the Major League Baseball or any other sport we would do the exact same thing.
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Viewpoint: San Francisco Giants & St. Louis Cardinals
Two of the National League’s most storied franchises received tough news from Stanton’s representatives. Stanton would not waive his no-trade clause to either one of these two teams. The Cardinals have a great young nucleus as well as a bunch of young arms in AA and AAA. For the Giants, they need help everywhere. At this point, they missed on Stanton and Japanese phenom Shohei Ohtani. This now makes them players in the free agent market. Look for them to get in on Mike Moustakas as well as J.D. Martinez. They have a once in a lifetime catcher and the Giants need to flip the switch to win-now.
Viewpoint: New York Yankees
Brian Cashman signs a new contract then earns his cash,. Deals like the one he struck with the Marlins for Stanton are what he is being paid for. The Yankees get Stanton and $30 million dollars while the Marlins get Starlin Castro, Jorge Guzman and Jose Devers. Guzman and Devers were both in A ball in 2017, so they did not give up anybody in AA or AAA. The Yankees are looking at Stanton on a three year contract worth $77 million. In 2020, Stanton has a player option to opt out of the rest of his deal which then becomes 7 years $213. So Stanton sits back, plays well and stays healthy, while seeing what Bryce Harper and Manny Machado get next off season he will get.
How does Stanton fit on the field with the Yankees? Who cares? New manager Aaron Boone has a new Murderer’s Row of hitters with Stanton, Judge, and Gary Sanchez. Then there is Greg Bird, the sweet left-handed swinging first baseman who will probably benefit the most with the big guns ahead of him in the lineup. The only way this trade would have been sweeter is if the Yankees could have also somehow unloaded Jacoby Ellsbury in the trade since he seems to be getting squeezed out of a position with all of the other talented outfielders on the Yankees. The money that the Yankees received will give them the flexibility now to probably go out and not only sign Todd Frazier to play third base, but now they can look to add another arm to the rotation like Lance Lynn and not get dinged by the luxury tax.
Viewpoint: Starlin Castro:
Your heart has to break for Castro. This is the second time he has been part of a trade away from a contender to a rebuilding team. However, if Gleyber Torres is healthy and swings a hot bat during spring training, this move eventually was going to happen. It would suck for him to get stuck in South Florida for the next two years and not contend. Here’s to hoping that at some point during the winter meetings that Derek Jeter can swing another deal for him to a contending team, just not in the American League East.
Stanton and Judge teaming up with the rest of the Yankee lineup has everyone in baseball doing a double take. All of the best players on the Yankees are under the age of thirty. Many of them are under team control for the next two to three years. However, the only way this move is a win is if the Yankees get their 28th World Series Banner.