The New York Yankees have once again gone into “win now” mode, making a number of trades throughout July. Most notably, the acquisition of pitcher Brandon McCarthy (2-0, 1.45 ERA in three starts) on July 5 has given the Yankees a huge boost to their depleted rotation. The Yankees have also added lefties Jeff Francis earlier this month and Chris Capuano Thursday. In addition, they have acquired hard-hitting third baseman Chase Headley from the San Diego Padres.
Now, the Yankees have headed back to San Diego in hopes of landing Padres starter Ian Kennedy. Jim Bowden of ESPN announced the rumor late Thursday night.
Yankees & Padres discussing deal that would send Ian Kennedy to Yankees in exchange for Eric Jagielo and Ian Clarkin according to a source
— JIM BOWDEN (@JimBowdenESPNxm) July 25, 2014
Kennedy is 8-9 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 22 starts for the Padres. He has not pitched as well as his 2011 performance of 21-4, 2.88 ERA and 1.09 WHIP for the past 2+ years, but he is still solid, and as with McCarthy, perhaps going to a contender could pull some of that lost magic back out of his hat.
While Kennedy would give the Yankees another boost in the rotation, acquiring him via trade would not come easily. CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman said Wednesday that any receiving team would have to make an “overwhelming” offer to land Kennedy even though the Padres have already started dismantling their roster for prospects. They traded Headley to New York this week and Huston Street to Los Angeles (Angels) last week.
Would the Yankees have what the Padres would want? The Yankees already sent their most Major-League-ready prospect (Yangervis Solarte) to San Diego in the Headley deal. Heyman said that the Padres would want third baseman Eric Jagielo and lefty Ian Clarkin, but GM Brian Cashman does not want to lose both prospects.
yankees are interested in kennedy but not in clarkin plus jagielo for kennedy. — Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) July 25, 2014
Should the Kennedy deal not happen, though, Cashman has a backup plan. Bowden also announced that Cashman is discussing Jorge De La Rosa with the Colorado Rockies.
Yankees also in discussions with Rockies involving Jorge De La Rosa who is red hot 3-0 with a 1.78 ERA and 1.105 Whip in July #Rockies #NYY — JIM BOWDEN (@JimBowdenESPNxm) July 25, 2014
De La Rosa is 11-6 with a 4.19 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. He has pitched 11 of his 21 games in Coors Field, where he as actually fared much better (7-3, 3.23) than he has on the road (4-4, 5.37).
The trade deadline is July 31 at 4:00 p.m. EDT. Cashman will do all he can to give his team a chance at making the postseason. Maybe he lands one of these two pitchers — or possibly both. Whether either of these deals happens or not, look for Cashman and the Yankees to find more players before next Saturday’s deadline.
PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images
