The New York Yankees are 15-10 through 25 games this season, leading the American League East. While outfielder Aaron Judge is making a strong case for another American League MVP award, and the Yankees’ offense is among the best in the league, the pitching is another story. The Yankees’ 4.07 ERA ranks 17th in Major League Baseball. Their beginning pitching ERA of 4.69 is the 26th highest in MLB, after only the Athletics, Miami Marlins, Colorado Rockies, and Baltimore Orioles.
The Yankees have lost their ace, Gerrit Cole, for the season and will be without reigning AL Rookie of the Year, Luis Gil, for the foreseeable future. While Max Fried and Carlos Rodon have been excellent, the rest of the rotation has been terrible. The Yankees will almost probably be looking for starting pitching this deadline, and the best player projected to be traded is Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara.
Though Alcantara is off to a rocky start in 2025 after Tommy John surgery, with a 6.56 ERA over five starts, he is only a few years removed from his 2022 Cy Young season, when he had a 2.28 ERA across 228.2 innings pitched.
Alcantara appears to be a lock to be dealt before the deadline, and his advantageous contract, which includes two additional years of team control and a club option in the third year, makes him a valuable asset.
Recently, USA Today’s MLB insider Bob Nightengale appeared on Dodgers Nation’s Dodgers Dougout Live on YouTube and provided an update on the Alcantara sweepstakes.
“I believe they will trade him, probably in late July. “The beauty of him is you got him for two more years after this at a low cost,” Nightengale told Dodgers Nation’s Doug McKain. “So someone is going to have to give up a lot. A team may have to pay more than the Padres did for Juan Soto.
“It’ll be a steep price.” While the price will be high, Nightengale expects the Yankees to be at the forefront of those negotiations. “I think you’ll have the Yankees doing everything possible,” Nightengale told McKain. “The Marlins will probably have about 10 teams calling on him willing to give up half their farm system.”
The Chicago Cubs are another team that may be interested in Alcantara, but Nightengale does not feel they have the prospects to sign him. He said the same thing about the Padres.
The Yankees, on the other hand, have more than enough prospect money to sign Alcantara, who could be the missing piece to help them return to the World Series this season in a wide-open AL.
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