Baseball writer's bold trade idea would net Yankees two multi-time All-Stars

The New York Yankees definitely have some major holes heading into the 2025 MLB season, and they have been magnified thanks to some significant injuries.

Not only is Giancarlo Stanton out for the foreseeable future due to elbow issues, but Gerrit Cole is sidelined for the season, and Luis Gil will be on the shelf for a few months.

Plus, the Yankees already had a problem at third base, as rolling into the campaign with Oswaldo Cabrera as the starter is not exactly ideal.

Could New York swing some trades to patch those gaps? Zach Pressnell of FanSided has proposed a blockbuster idea in which the Yanks would acquire third baseman Nolan Arenado and pitcher Sonny Gray from the St. Louis Cardinals. Two birds, one stone.

“The Yankees could also look to reunite with starting pitcher Sonny Gray as a replacement for Cole,” Pressnell wrote. “Gray has been excellent for the last few seasons and the righty would provide a stable starter in a rotation of question marks. But what would a blockbuster deal look like in this situation? Obviously, the Yankees would need Arenado to waive his no-trade clause. If and when that’s done, we could move on to the next step.

"In this deal, the Yankees would land Gray and Arenado. Here's the catch. Cashman would likely need to eat most of, if not the entirety, of both Arenado's and Gray's contracts.

"This would be a huge hit to the payroll, but it would lessen the prospect capital to land the two stars. New York would likely be able to hold onto most of their top prospects, only dealing a few lower level guys away in the hypothetical deal.

"It would be a salary dump for St. Louis and a huge addition of money to the books for the Bronx Bombers. But New York would fill their two biggest holes with star players."

Here’s the issue, though: Gray spent parts of two seasons with the Yankees in 2017 and 2018 and struggled mightily, pitching to the tune of a 4.51 ERA over 41 appearances and 34 starts. Gray has been very successful everywhere else he has been, so perhaps the veteran simply does not like pitching in the Bronx.

Since departing New York, Gray has made a pair of All-Star appearances, and in 2023, he finished second in AL Cy Young award voting during a terrific campaign with the Minnesota Twins. He went 13-9 with a 3.84 ERA with the Cardinals last season.

The 35-year-old also had some not so kind things to say about the Yanks after leaving. Couple that with the fact that Arenado can block the trade, and this doesn’t seem like a slam dunk for the Pinstripes.