The Yankees’ current skid has only sharpened the pressure on the front office to act before the August 3 trade deadline. New York has dropped seven straight, a stretch that includes sweeps by the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers, and the roster clearly has holes that need attention. Third base is one possible area, but the bigger swing would be finding an upgrade over Austin Wells.
That’s where ESPN’s David Schoenfield enters the picture, linking the Yankees to Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman in a move that would be loud, expensive, and unlikely. Schoenfield’s own caveat says plenty about how tough this kind of deal would be to pull off.
“New York Yankees: Trade for Hunter Goodman,” Schoenfield writes. "... Goodman, who has bashed 26 home runs, would be a big get, but with three years of team control beyond 2026, he will be expensive to acquire and a position player with this much time until free agency is basically never traded at the deadline."
Goodman has been one of the standout bats in the game this season. The 26-year-old All-Star has launched 26 homers, owns a 2.0 bWAR across 81 games, and is carrying an .853 OPS. For a Yankees lineup looking for more punch, that profile jumps off the page.
Wells, by comparison, has struggled badly. In 57 games, he has posted -0.2 bWAR, hit four home runs, and slashed .488 OPS. On production alone, Goodman would be a major step up.
Of course, there’s no cheap way to get him. A deal like this would likely take a package built around Carlos Lagrange, George Lombard Jr., and perhaps more top prospects beyond that. The Rockies have little incentive to move Goodman, but if they ever do change course, the Yankees fit as a logical destination.
It’s the kind of rumor that makes sense on paper because the upgrade is obvious, even if the price is steep. And if New York were willing to pay it, Goodman would give the Yankees a much more dangerous look not just now, but heading into 2026 and beyond.
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For Boston, that creates an interesting deadline layer around one of its most trusted relievers. The lefty in question has been excellent this season and still looks like one of the better short-term bets on the market, which is exactly why his availability is worth watching. The wrinkle is that any deal would also have to account for his contract situation, so this is the kind of call that could shape more than just a one-month stretch for the Red Sox. [Read more 🡒]
Sonny Gray Is Giving Red Sox Fans A Start They Rarely See
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He is 9-1 with a 2.69 ERA, which has him sitting atop the American League in wins and winning percentage, and the run he has been on lately has only sharpened the impression. Over his last three starts, Gray has allowed just four earned runs in 21 1/3 innings, a stretch that has made him look less like a stopgap and more like the kind of dependable arm Boston has been chasing for a while. [Read more 🡒]