Brian Cashman still has work to do before Monday’s 6 p.m. ET trade deadline, and the Yankees’ search for help behind the plate is getting plenty of attention.
The club already made one move to boost the offense by adding infielder Luis Garcia Jr. from the Washington Nationals, but the catching situation remains a problem. New York’s trio of Austin Wells, Ali Sanchez, and J.C.
Escarra is hitting a combined .188, a number that ranks third-worst in the majors. Ben Rice can be used at catcher if needed, but The New York Post’s Joel Sherman reported that option is not on the table, even with Garcia now in the mix.
That has pushed the Yankees into a crowded catcher market, with several contenders looking for the same kind of upgrade. The Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago White Sox are also in the hunt. The Milwaukee Brewers are out of the picture after acquiring Bo Naylor from the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday, and the Texas Rangers may have moved on too after landing Los Angeles Angels catcher Logan O’Hoppe last week.
At the top of the list sits Hunter Goodman of the Colorado Rockies. He’s tied for second in the majors with 33 home runs this season, which explains why he’s drawing so much interest. The 26-year-old two-time All-Star would be a major addition, but he could also be too expensive, with three years of arbitration eligibility still left.
Another name creating a lot of noise is Baltimore Orioles switch-hitter Adley Rutschman. The three-time All-Star hit a career-high 20 home runs in 2023, but this season has been a quieter one at the plate, with a .251 average and eight homers. Rutschman, 28, still has one more year of arbitration eligibility remaining.
Tyler Stephenson of the Cincinnati Reds is also on the board. He’s batting .256 with nine home runs in 85 games this season, and he set a career high with 19 homers in 2024. At 29, he’d likely cost less than the bigger names because he’s set to become a free agent after the season.
Minnesota’s Ryan Jeffers is in that same short-term rental category. The 29-year-old is hitting .291 with 10 home runs in just 51 games and recently returned after missing time with a broken left hand. Like Stephenson, he’ll be a free agent after the season.
Miami Marlins catcher Liam Hicks has also drawn interest, though he doesn’t fit the Yankees’ right-handed bat requirement because he hits left-handed. Still, Hicks is producing at a .282 clip with 14 home runs, and he won’t be arbitration-eligible until 2028, which would make him an expensive get. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon reported that the Rays and Red Sox are among the teams interested in Hicks, and that “The New York Yankees are not involved in the talks,”
ESPN’s Buster Olney expects New York to come away with bullpen help and another bat. Jeff Passan reported that the “Yankees are shooting high on a catcher.”
“The Yankees will add a reliever and a right-handed hitter. … the Yankees will be aggressive,” per Olney.
Jon Heyman of The New York Post said he doesn’t think Jeffers is available, but pointed to Stephenson as a more realistic fit for New York.
“Jeffers probably isn’t going anywhere ... The Yankees may be more likely to wind up with Tyler Stephenson, who’s serviceable. But Goodman and Rutschman are worth trying for.”
Sherman also weighed in on the Yankees’ catching hunt, mentioning Jeffers and Rutschman.
“Anyone notice that the Twins (Jeffers) fell a game under .500 on Sunday while the Yanks remained remained engaged with the Orioles about the injured Adley Rutschman?? One of those two is the dream.”
Cashman is expected to be active as the deadline nears, especially with Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Cody Bellinger all sidelined. Even so, the Yankees are not in a position where they have to panic. FanGraphs still gives them a 98.3% chance to make the playoffs and a 10.8% chance to reach the World Series, with only the Los Angeles Dodgers carrying better championship odds at 29.4%.
But with the red-hot Red Sox closing the gap in the standings, New York still has reasons to make a move before the clock runs out.
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Alonzos path has also been marked by a far more difficult personal chapter off the field. The Venezuelan native recently went through a family tragedy tied to the earthquakes in his home country, a reminder that the lives of prospects rarely fit neatly into a box score. As the Yankees sort through what they got back in the trade, his name carries a different kind of weight now, and the human side of his story makes his arrival worth watching beyond the usual prospect-angle lens. [Read more 🡒]
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For Brian Cashman, the hard part is not identifying the fit. It is figuring out how much prospect capital and salary relief it would take to make the Mets engage, especially with New York expected to want more than one player in return. ESPN has already put Dax Kilby into the mix as a possible piece, which is enough to show how quickly this could get expensive if the Yankees decide to push beyond just kicking the tires. [Read more 🡒]