The New York Yankees are looking for answers at third base, and many analysts think they've found their guy in Arizona Diamondbacks star Eugenio Suárez. CBS Sports writer Mike Axisa urged the Yankees to make a big swing for both Suárez and Diamondbacks right-handed pitcher Merrill Kelly.
"Suárez is the guy this trade deadline. The big rental bat who fits so many contenders. The Blue Jays, Cubs, Mets, and Tigers all make sense for Suárez in addition to the Yankees," Axisa wrote. "He's on pace for more than 50 homers, and although his third base defense leaves something to be desired at this point in his career, the power makes up for it."
While Suárez has been linked to the Pinstripes over and over again for the past month, the move is unlikely after the team traded two prospects for Colorado Rockies infielder Ryan McMahon Friday afternoon. Kelly is a bit of a newer name and would fit nicely in the Yankees' starting rotation, according to Axisa.
"Kelly, 36, is having yet another terrific season, one in which he's again outperformed ERA estimators that are based on exit velocity and other measures of contact quality allowed. Do it once and it might be a fluke, but Kelly has done it for close to 1,000 innings now. It's a skill," he wrote. "Kelly is plug-and-play. He'd slot in nicely as New York's No. 3 in October behind Fried and Carlos Rodón."
Though it may be a difficult trade to pull off, especially with so many teams vying for Suárez, the Yankees have been struggling in the infield, and Axisa urged the team to pick up him and Kelly, no matter the expense. For a team with historically deep pockets, like the Yankees, they just might be able to pull it off.
"Barring a surprise addition to the trade market (always possible), Suárez will be the best power bat available at the deadline, and Kelly will be one of the top starters available," he wrote. "Winning a bidding war to get one of them will hurt. Getting both would really put a dent in New York's young player pipeline. Both would fill needs and fill them very well though. They're worth the price."
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