The New York Yankees said there was a good chance they would stay put at the trade deadline and they certainly meant it. The team was linked to all kinds of players like pitchers Cole Hamels, David Price and James Shields along with closers Craig Kimbrel and Aroldis Chapman. instead, the Yankees held tight to their prospects and will continue with the players on the roster. However, with injuries stacking up across the board, what kind of changes are in store of New York?
The biggest issue for the Yankees is their starting pitching rotation. Michael Pineda is officially on the 15-day disabled list for forearm issues. Pineda was not playing well to begin with so the Yankees did not hesitate to send him down. Ivan Nova is coming off Tommy John surgery and his stats continue to decline because of it. CC Sabathia is looking like a shell of himself, struggling with inconsistencies. He was hospitalized for dehydration after his last start. Nathan Eovaldi and Masahiro Tanaka are the team's best bets.
According to ESPN's Andrew Marchand, Adam Warren will re-enter the starting rotation following the injury to Pineda. Warren looked solid in his brief time in the role and the Yankees reportedly feel confident in his abilities. The Yankees also called back up Luis Severino and Bryan Mitchell. They will likely join the bullpen in order to help Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances. After not trading for Kimbrel and Chapman, the bullpen of the Yankees is stretched to max. They must now worry about injuries becoming an issue on that side of the roster.
Another question for the Yankees is Stephen Drew. The second baseman has not looked solid this season and the Yankees were eyeing several infield options to try and improve the position. Those all went nowhere. Instead, the Yankees traded for Dustin Ackley from the Seattle Mariners who will battle for the spot with Drew. There is also a chance that the Yankees call back up Rob Refsnyder who saw a brief amount of playing time this season. According to Marchand, the Yankees are hesitant to bring Refsnyder back into the majors while wanting him to develop more before making another debut.
New York is keeping their fingers crossed that his plan works. The team is still sitting in first place, but one or two more injuries could ruin that.
