As the Yankees play out the final few games before the 2025 All-Star break, holes in the roster have begun to form.
Longtime GM Brian Cashman is well aware of these needs and when speaking with the media prior to Wednesday's game against the Mariners at Yankee Stadium, he listed what he sees as pieces the Yankees need.
"I’m definitely going to be looking for upgrades if I can. We’ve lost three starters out of our World Series rotation so far this year. So I’m going to see if I can find a starter despite getting some real quality starts from others who stepped up like Will Warren and others," Cashman said. "I would import a starter, some relievers, because our bullpen is taxed and some injuries. And an infielder, if possible. That’s a long list. I’m not sure if this will be a deep deadline or not. Not sure how active we can be but we’ll try to be active. And try to import improvements, that’s the gig."
Heading into Wednesday's games, there are 15 teams in Wild Card spots or within five games of the final spot, so the number of teams willing to sell is currently limited. Cashman knows this and points to this past offseason as an example of the disparity of opportunities between the winter and summer months.
When Juan Soto signed with the Mets, Cashman said there were opportunities to replace that production and fill out the roster. The Yankees signed Max Fried and Paul Goldschmidt, and traded for Cody Bellinger and Devin Williams this offseason. Opportunities like those may not be available for Cashman, but the GM will continue to look at all avenues.
"We're going to go to town. We're going to do everything we possibly can to improve ourselves and try to match up. Hopefully, at the end of it all, we'll have whatever's here on the current roster remains healthy, and we can add to it and be proud of it and take our shot. Hopefully, I can fix what ails us because there's some areas on this team that need fixing."
Is there a need more pressing than others? Cashman, as he's said in past seasons, pointed to pitching.
"Pitching is always going to be that," he said. "We’ve taken hits in the rotation when we lost [Gerrit] Cole and Luis Gil and now [Clarke] Schmidt. [Ryan] Yarbrough was a hell of a player for us. Fernando Cruz. Whether it’s bullpen guys or starting pitchers, it’s all of it. That’s the area."
Although Gil, Yarbrough and Cruz are expected to return from injuries this season, Cole and Schmidt are not so lucky. The Yankees are starting prospect Cam Schlittler on Wednesday as the team tries to make it to the All-Star break.
And just a few short weeks after that, the trade deadline will be here and Cashman will need to make moves to try and put the Yankees in a position to return to the World Series.
We'll see if he can do it.
The 2025 MLB trade deadline is set for July 31.
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