Yankees GM Brian Cashman said that he will be looking for pitching during this trade deadline season.
While Cashman will be trying to fortify the bullpen, the rotation needs some work after numerous injuries this year. Ace Gerrit Cole is out for the season after Tommy John surgery, and Clarke Schmidt will miss the rest of the year with his second Tommy John surgery. That's not to mention 2024 Rookie of the Year Luis Gil missing more than half the season.
Although the arms the Yanks do have are performing very well — especially Max Fried and Carlos Rodon — reinforcements are needed. That's where Diamondbacks righty Zac Gallen comes in.
The 29-year-old is in the final year of his contract and if Arizona falls out of contention, he could be the perfect trade piece this deadline season.
Should the Yankees take a flyer on Gallen?
Here are the pros and cons of acquiring the right-hander….
Pros
Gallen has been a big-game pitcher for the D-backs, pitching to a sub-4.00 ERA from 2022-24. He received Cy Young votes in three seasons and was third in voting in 2023 when he had a 3.47 ERA during Arizona's improbable run to the World Series.
Although he hasn't been at his best this year, the Yankees saw how devastating Gallen can be firsthand. Back on April 2, Gallen struck out 13 batters across 6.2 scoreless innings.
The potential for dominance is there — Gallen just hasn't been consistent enough. But that could fall in the Yankees' favor as Arizona may not receive many great offers for Gallen, so New York could potentially acquire him for cheap or in a package deal for, say, Eugenio Suarez.
Gallen also has postseason experience. In six starts during that 2023 run, he pitched to a 4.54 ERA. While not overly impressive, Gallen saved his best playoff start for last. In Game 5 of the World Series, the right-hander allowed just one run on three hits across 6.1 innings while striking out six.
Again, the potential for dominance is there.
Cons
To put it lightly, Gallen is a reclamation project.
Gallen is far enough removed from his career season of 2023 that teams should be concerned about whether he'll be able to sustain those heights ever again.
If the season were to end today, Gallen would have career-worsts in ERA (5.40), WHIP (1.374) and K/9 (8.6). The biggest problem for Gallen this season has been his control and walks. He's walked 45 batters in 20 starts. He walked 54 batters in 28 starts a year ago and just 47 the previous two seasons in 34 and 31 starts, respectively.
Looking at advanced metrics, Gallen ranks in the bottom 10 percent in hard hit percentage, bottom 13 percent in average exit velocity, and bottom 18 percent in xERA (4.86). All that translates to Gallen getting hit hard and allowing a lot of runs.
There's also the rental aspect of a Gallen acquisition. If the Yankees were to part with prospects for Gallen, it's only for a couple of months — and it will need to work down the stretch and in the postseason to justify the trade. It's a big risk.
Verdict
Gallen is an interesting case. This all comes down to what the price would be.
The high strikeout potential is tempting, but if Gallen costs too much, it's a pass. I would do it if he's paired with Suarez but on his own, the Yankees can likely do better elsewhere.
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