Jul 13, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase (48) celebrates after getting the final out against the Chicago White Sox during the tenth inning at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images David Banks-Imagn Images

Game-Changing Trade Target Drawing Comparisons to Yankees Legend

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Michael Rosenstein | Last updated Jul 17, 2025 9:00 AM ET

New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman is on the prowl for pitching ahead of the July 31 MLB trade deadline.

Specifically, he could use another starter after watching Clarke Schmidt go down with an injury requiring season-ending Tommy John surgery.

But manager Aaron Boone can never have enough high-leverage arms in the bullpen, and that brings us to Emmanuel Clase.

The Cleveland Guardians closer is on the market, and if the Yankees want in, all they have to do is part with a former first-round draft pick. That's according to an American League scout who talked with NJ Advance Media's Randy Miller.

"I’d offer up the No. 1 draft pick from last year, Ben Hess," the scout said. "I saw Hess pitch in Hudson Valley this year. I think he could be a No. 3 starter, but he gets rattled easily. As soon as he walks somebody or gets hit a little bit, he’s looking into the dugout for help and pouting, so I’d jump off him even though he’s a damn good pitcher."

It's rare for a team to trade a first-round pick so soon after selecting the player, but in this case, Clase is worth it.

"Oh my God! Clase is a game changer," the scout told Miller. "‘Hey, Clase, go do your Mariano Rivera thing and throw that cutter 100 mph.’ Ballgame. Think about Clase in pinstripes. You know what’s coming, and you still can’t do anything with it. If that ain’t Mariano Rivera all over again, I don’t know what is.

"And if the Yankees get Clase, they can move (Devin) Williams to the eighth inning and use (Luke) Weaver to get four or five outs in the sixth and seventh," the scout concluded.

Rivera, as you likely remember, is MLB's all-time saves leader. The 13-time All-Star and five-time World Series champion is the only player to be inducted unanimously into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Clase is 5-2 with a 2.91 ERA and 20 saves in 43 appearances this season. He's led the American League in saves in each of the last three seasons (42 in 2022, 44 in 2023 and a career-high 47 in 2024).

A three-time All-Star, Clase finished third in voting last year for the American League Cy Young Award and 11th in AL MVP voting.

The 27-year-old Clase is making $4.5 million this year and has a pair of $10 million club options for 2026 and 2027, according to Spotrac.

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