At 46-45, Arizona is among a slew of clubs with realistic playoff hopes in the wide-open National League. Just 1 1/2 games back of wild-card position, the Diamondbacks don’t look like surefire sellers with the July 31 trade deadline three-plus weeks ago. Should that change, though, the Diamondbacks could have an attractive trade chip in starter Robbie Ray. The Yankees are among teams that “historically have liked” the left-hander, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic recently reported (subscription required).
Now 27 years old, Ray was already a piece in a trade featuring the Yankees earlier in his career. As part of a three-team deal in December 2014, the Diamondbacks acquired Ray from the Tigers, the Yankees got shortstop Didi Gregorius from the D-backs and the Tigers picked up righty Shane Greene from New York. Ray has since turned into one of the majors’ greatest strikeout artists among starters, having posted the league’s third-highest K/9 (11.14) dating back to his first season in Arizona. Shaky control (4.09 BB/9) has helped prevent Ray from limiting runs at an ace-level rate, though the 3.86 ERA and 3.85 FIP he has put up in 692 1/3 innings as a Diamondback are still respectable.
The 2019 version of Ray has offered production in line with his career totals. Over 104 2/3 frames, the slider-heavy Ray owns a 3.96 ERA/4.05 FIP with 11.78 K/9 (fifth in the game) and a 13.7 percent swinging-strike rate (12th). On the negative side, Ray’s velocity has dipped compared to last year, and though his walk rate has fallen from 5.09 per nine to 4.64 since then, it remains unpalatable. Ray has also yielded home runs on upward of 15 percent of fly balls for the fourth consecutive year, in part because his groundball rate checks in just under 40 percent for the second straight season. Moreover, as Rosenthal notes, Ray has never been known as a workhorse who lasts deep into games. He has only amassed 30 or more starts once, in 2016, and has averaged well under six frames per outing in his career.
Ray does have his flaws, but no team would expect to land an ace in acquiring him. The club would instead be under the impression it’s trading for one-plus year of a solid, affordable starter. Ray is making a reasonable $6.05MM this year and in his penultimate season of arbitration eligibility – facts that only add to his appeal for the D-backs and other teams.
World Series-contending New York has been on the lookout for starters for weeks and could use an ace in light of Luis Severino’s ongoing injury problems. However, the team might struggle to find a true No. 1 starter from elsewhere this summer. The Indians may part with Trevor Bauer, who has landed on the Yankees’ radar, though he hasn’t consistently resembled his ace-caliber 2018 self. Along with Ray and Bauer, the Yankees have shown reported interest in the Mets’ Zack Wheeler (link), the Giants’ Madison Bumgarner and the Blue Jays’ Marcus Stroman (links here). For the most part, that group pales in comparison to a healthy Severino. Nevertheless, each of those starters would seemingly help a Yankees rotation that – despite the team’s AL-best 57-31 record – hasn’t received front-line production from anyone.
Looking beyond this season, the Yankees will lose the retiring CC Sabathia, which could make Ray or anyone else under control past 2019 an even more logical fit. Severino will at least be back next year (barring something catastrophic), though, and Jordan Montgomery could return from June 2018 Tommy John surgery by then. James Paxton, Masahiro Tanaka, Domingo German and the struggling J.A. Happ comprise the rest of the Yankees’ experienced starters who are currently slated to stick around in 2020.
I’ve “historically liked” Selena Gomez…but that never turned into anything for me
She’s as overrated as the Yankees prospects
Kinda creepy
you hate jokes too?
Depends on his age.
Me too for Cindy Crawford! A lot!
Hahahah
A+
Now that’s a better option for the Yankees over stroman/wheeler/boyd/bumgarner
not really. Maybe he costs less than those guys but he’s definitely not better than any of them.
Not better than boyd the guy has 1 half of a season that’s good and his CY young Bumgarner is done another great pitcher the giants used and abused. Wheeler and stroman aren’t necessary aces. I would put the last 2 in the same sentence as ray.
Severino has one good year and all of a sudden none of these guys compare? What crap
correction 2 years where he was in top 10 for CY a solid half season as a rookie and one bad season. But if you think he is so bad might as well release him and let it be someone else’s pitcher.
He’s had one good season. He was good for a half last year but hard to call him a reliable ace. Couldn’t get out of the first inning in a playoff game
Nah, this is cherry picking stats pretty bad. He’s been very good in 3 of his 4 seasons (2017 was elite, but 18 he was plenty good and briefly in 15). The metrics support that too. He’s pitched several solid playoff games since the one you mentioned.
He’s only reached 5 innings once in 6 starts in the post season come out of Yankee land and into reality
They also don’t ask for lengthy starts recently with a monster bullpen. The days of consistent complete game pitching are gone. Too many long counts due to high k numbers
There’s no team that wants their starter to give them an era over 6 and not eat innings in the playoffs no matter the bullpen
So poor post season performance negates a full year of pitching? In 2 years of postseason he has 6 starts. Not much of a data set to judge a player. Coyne our of fantasyland and into reality.
Too bad lmao
Another lefty?
Can’t have too many lefty starters with that rightfield porch.
It would be nice to have at least one RH starter. I don’t know where they come up with this crap. It seems like internet writers say the Yankees have “historically” liked every decent pitcher that hits the market and really what team wouldn’t be interested in a cheap, young middle of the rotation pitcher? I seriously doubt the Yankees are willing to outbid everyone else for an extreme flyball pitcher that walks way too many guys. They have the wrong stadium for his skillset.
As great a job as Cashman has done, he continues to not do enough to land a true front line starter.
It’s the most difficult and costly thing for any GM to do and there aren’t a lot of those guys in the game.
he has had his chances but refuses to pay the price one way or another. The teams that have paid the price have rings….
We’ve had this debate lol Disagree
He landed Paxton this past offseason. Maybe his numbers aren’t what we’d like to see but he has top shelf stuff when he’s on. Happ, I think he was the blunder of the Yankees offseason. Granted, I get why we signed him, he did pitch pretty darned well after we acquired him last season.
I do agree that we need to get someone else that is at least a 2 or 3 caliber starter, but I don’t think we necessarily NEED an ace. I say that because of our bullpen depth which enables us, particularly in the playoffs, to have our starters go 4 or 5 innings worst case before they come in.
So maybe the goal should be to land a #3 type starter along with another arm for the pen. That covers us should Betances not return.
Now, should Betances return, we just have more depth. Then, perhaps Sevy returns in Sept and has some time to shake off the rust and adds even more depth to the pitching staff. Although I do suspect Sevy doesn’t throw a pitch for NY this season if we get a 2 or 3 type starter.
If the DBacks play over .500 against the Cards, Rangers and Brewers, then beat up Baltimore and Miami, they will hold on Robbie Ray. Coincidentally the DBacks play the Yankees leading into deadline day.
Best case scenario for the DBacks this year is they win the wild card game and lose to the dodgers in the DS again. I think they would trade Ray if the offer is right. If not, definitely in the offseason
and Cash has historically bad taste in pitching acquisitions. A lefty with a era of 4 in the NL coming to the bronx??? Stay the F away.
I am sure if he acquires ray we will hear about what a steal it was and that he was the best option available. when he pitches a gem against Baltimore or some-other dreg of the AL, davidoff and some posters here will extol Cash’s genius. Then comes game 3 against Houston and Britton is in by the 3rd inning……
Get an ACE or make no deal. Ray, Boyd etc are no better than what we currently have.
A lot of Yankees fans feel the same way. Their track record of bringing in established pitchers from other organizations is spotty at best. Fans of other teams likes to point out the pitching matchups against Verlander and Cole. But not a lot talk about any of the guys they want to trade for facing those righties in the Astros lineup. MadBum, Ray and Stroman are all lefties and how much confidence would even the most rabid Tigers fans think Boyd would do in a playoff game against that lineup? Two of the three lefty pitchers are also NLers. The Yankees are never going to let any of those pitchers go more than two times through the lineup in a short series. The Yankees should not be overpaying for modest upgrades at best.
TY= BTW stroman is a righty I think. Nonetheless your point remains the same.
I would be thrilled is any Yankee pitcher could make it through the rotation twice in any playoff game!
If Corbin would’ve been signed over happ they wouldn’t have had to discuss guys like Robbie Ray right now.
If Cash actually went out and took a chance on Corbin, Morton, Dallas they woulld not be in this position. And all these guys I mention would had even better stat on the Yankees!
I mean he thought giving Corbin ~130
MM (His 140 MM contract is deferred so the PV is knocked down) was more risky than giving happ 34-51. (If he makes 27 starts next year) I just don’t see how that was a smart move at all. I’m not saying this with hindsight either. I felt that way this offseason as well. Happ had a 4.44 FIP as a Yankee last year and it was pretty clear to me he was going to be a #4 starter at best.
You take Happ’s money off of what COrbin would’ve cost and the deal is roughly a 6/90 for Corbin. All that would’ve cost the Yankees is a draft pick. Now, they’re going to have to buy a starter using prospects. Likely an inferior starter to Corbin on top of all that.
exactly….
corbin has a 3.34 ERA on a bad NL team
Ray has a 3.96 ERA on a marginal NL team
Happ has a 5.02 ERA on a dominant Yankee team
Oh and Happ makes 17 mil a year for 2.5 more years. fantastic, isn’t it. Cash is surely a genius, especially with starting pitchers
I wouldn’t say the Nationals are a “bad” team…
Report: Yankees “Historically Have Liked” Robbie Ray & every other legit MLB player but fall on their faces when it come to SP.
Just sign CC and Gardner in 2020
Robbie Ray has one more win and loss then Sonny Gray. Go get him Cash! More of the bottom of the barrel scraping
Cashman couldn’t sign an Ace if he landed on his lap.
or acquire via trade
Are you guys gonna do this on every new update? Ok Cash hasn’t signed an ace since CC. Fine .. what ace is available right now? Who can the Yankees realistically get? There’s problems with every one of the guys being rumored with the exception of Scherzer and he’s highly unlikely to be moved. Can you name some solutions instead of pounding on the problems we all know we have or is this a personal complaint forum?
Trevor Bauer & Matthew Boyd would fit nicely. Robbie Ray walks too many but high K rate. Any of those 3 would help. Bauer would cost your over-rated prospects—-like 3 of them but Yankees can afford it.
I agree that Bauer is an interesting choice, but he is not an ace. Boyd is a career 5 ERA pitcher having a career year… I can’t bank on him being a true ace. Robbie Ray I worry about a left hander with his style and our right field… but not an ace still. The post is about an ace and I just don’t see one available.
welcome back my friend and please thank your son again for his service. I appreciate it.
I will stop when the “problem” that Cash himself caused is fixed. I am frustrated as the current problem did not have exist at all, However, he consistently errs with the rotation.
Lets start with what i don’t want- we can call this the happless, garcia, lynn category- Boyd, Ray, Minor etc..
We can move onto the roll the dice category.aka tanaka, seve when healthy and pax (meaning great when great and pray the other 50% of the time). Baum, wheeler, stroman
Lastly the i’d be happy crowd. Pitchers who can bring it (good 75% or more) . Scherzer, Bauer and Thor
However, as I have said to you before. This is Cash’s damn job, and with the resources at his disposal he needs to get it right. He is the baseball expert with the dream team of an analytics, technology and scouting staff.
Thank you for you caring words I’ll gladly pass that on. We’ve had the Cash debate.. so I’ll just skip to some ideas. First .. with Toronto tanking I can see a package for Stroman… not sure how I feel about it .. again not an ace… Bauer to me still feels possible but his stats this year and Clint like attitude worries me … I wonder… and haven’t researched it at all .. but how bad is Kluber hurt… if he is due back in August … with Sevy coming back and maybe a Ray or Alex Wood pickup for the backup might be the kind of gamble I’d go with. Bum isn’t likely to leave SF and his stats are sliding.. Dont think you can pry Thor but even if you could he’s kind of just as risky as Pax in my mind. Kluber has a proven past … and injured might come at a bit of a discount… just a thought not a hill I’m willing to die on
to me stroman feels like another pax, seve, tanaka type. when going they are great but half the time they are not. As such i feel like we have enough of that. i would pass
I really like bauer. his tude is what it is but he seems to tune it out. Not sure about kluber either but i’d pass.
Thor has legit stuff, but being a Met takes it toll. They have no pen, crappy d, and a helter skelter offense. On the Yanks he’s be a stud. I would trade a lot for him as the upside is there.
In the end if its costs an adujar, a frazier, a florial ( one not all 3) plus some other decent stuff he needs to pull the trigger (for thor and bauer). I know you don’t believe it but it has worked for the last 4 world series champs in cueto, chapman, verlander and sale….. ALL BIG COSTLY MOVES for a difference maker.
Not that I don’t believe in it… It’s the other teams. The consistently look to get more out of the Tankees it seems… U mean the whole Detroit asking Gleyber for Boyd thing… how many teams are asking those high prices that they wouldn’t of others
And when it comes to Thor… it’s nit so much his stats as it is his injury history. Seems on the IL an awful lot. His stuff is ridiculously good … but can he stay healthy? That’s why I compare him to Oax … great stuff when he’s healthy.
don’t agree, boston gave up the #1 overall MLB prospect plus another top 25 guy for sale. It was first time in 20 years the overall #1 have been traded. You don’t get steeper than that.
I would say the following:
1. it worked for Boston big time
2.Boston would not undo that trade in a million years
3. no one in MLB spheres would say it didn’t work out
4. Cashman doesn’t have the testicular fortitude or hubris to make the deal. Ergo Boston has become MLB’s top club with Yankees playing catch-up
I think you have to realize that great SP costs a fortune. The Yanks have to pay the price like others do or we will need an incredible amount of luck to have a parade. enough with acquiring #2’s and 3’s, supplementing them when they falter with 5’s (lynn, happless, garcia) and then spending a national GDP on the pen as a cover up. What good does it serve to have a pen that comes in by the 3rd inning with the team down 6 already.
I completely agree Boston would not take that deal back. We’re on the same page as far as the value of ace level starting pitching… but what I think I may not be getting across right here is the level of starting pitching out there. Would I consider trading Gleyber for Scherzer , Kershaw, Sale…. yes absolutely… but Boyd, Stroman, MadBum… hell no. There are tier levels here. For an ace you absolutely are going to pay a premium and historically the Yanjs have waited for free agency on Aces. Clemens, CC, Randy Johnson , All proven aces that we “bought”. But deciding the value of future stars vs free agent stars is a different thing? Is Bauer a true Ace? I’d be willing to pay Clint Frazier to find out but not Gleyber. Ya see what I’m saying? Teams that ask for a Gleyber level mlb player in trade for a Boyd level player … well that’s almost an insult. That’s like me trying to trade my trade my 86 Fiero for your 68 Shelby mustang… Yeah mine is newer but same value? I don’t think so.
So I guess what I’m saying is .. if there isn’t an True ace available whether it be free agent or trade… cause let’s face it no one has put an ace on the market yet this year… and second tier choices like Stroman and Boyd have asking prices like they ARE aces such as a Detroit asking for Gleyber for Boyd … then what do you expect Cash and his staff to do? Overpay for a second tier guy? That’s not good business. And it seems when it comes to the Yankees inquiring about pitchers.. they are frequently asked to overpay like crazy. Gleyber isn’t a prospect. Now asking about Florial or Frazier, Deivi Garcia, Johnny Lasagna… sure let’s talk about dealing .. but c’mon keep this in reality.
Scratch the ace available comments .. SNY and NJ.com are reporting Thor is on the market… things could get interesting folks. Padres have a deep deep system though and are said to be interested.
at this point gleyber isnt going anywhere! 3 years ago maybe. however, now he is worth more than a #1 overall MLB prospect.
besides the sale deal should be the benchmark for a top 3 guy/Ace, and cole for a top 10 guy.
I still say Cash screws it up and doesn’t pay the price, but I pray I am wrong and have to eat crow
Agreed … but then we have to look at the Yankees farm system vs their competitors for a top tier guy. For example .. if Scherzer was made available…. Yankees farm is better than the Red Sox … but is it better than Houston? Not so sure … San Diego? Definitely not. So it’s hard to say Cash doesn’t go after aces when he may not have a real package to attain them. He tried with Gerrit Cole… Houston had more to give Yanks didn’t… is that all on Cash? Sale trade… The number 1 prospect in baseball plus in a package … Yanks didn’t have that to offer… so I have a hard time calling that a miss when we didn’t have enough chips to even be in the game. Now when he traded Miller and Chapman away he got a haul back! No denying it… he can make the plays when he has the chips to play.
Next year the’ll sign CC for one year he’ll win 5 games and when Tanaka’s contract is up next year the’ll bring him back for 20 million and he’ll win 7 games. Meanwhile there are a few SP free agents I’d like. But it’ll be the same sob story with this team.
Some death star this team is more like a dud star.
mlb.com/cut4/brian-cashman-compares-yankees-to-dea…
Remember that gimme a FN BREAK
Louie .. ok Cole is a FA this year unless Houston wraps him up .. so we’ll be making an offer In sure… Tanaka is worth a resign and CC already announced retirement sooo what exactly is your point here? That the Yanks are bad at signing SPs … or you just wanna rail about our one area of need? The rest of the team is looking great … and by the way … just for you … fun stat … Gardner has hit more HRs this year than Mookie Betts … just saying… perspective
Sounds like Cashman, who is in love with his own press clippings & the sound of his voice, will go cheap on the pursuit of a dominant pitcher. Instead, he will get a fringe pitcher so as the October months come around, the cooler air, those homers start to disappear. You need a dominant pitcher to win in October. LAD & Houston are the teams to beat. Minnesota will be tough, gritty, hungry. TB could make a trade & they can pitch in a short series & dominate. Yankees have a bullpen but those starters in October——scary!
All the Yankees know how to do is take dares on the Sonny Gray the Lance Lynn’s and The Bartolo Colons of the worlds. They just can’t land a quality starter that will put them over the edge.
We can all sit here and read the headlines of the top flight SP that are available and the Yankees are in on but they always wind up with nothing.
The best they can do is sign CC the Grays of the world.. Nothing new here move along.
Just google the JUNK they have gotten for SP over the years before the trade deadline. JUNK!
One thing about Cashman and the rotation, if the medical staff had been even remotely competent, the starting staff post ASB would have been: Severino, Tanaka, Paxton, German and Montgomery. With Happ and CC thrown into the mix somehow. That’s not too bad, especially with three guys coming out of the farm system. Despite the narrative that the Yankees don’t have pitching, they’ve done a nice job of finding and developing a nice core of homegrown prospects for their staff. I’d rather they trust their in-house options over expending assets for guys who their genius pitching coach is going to ruin.
What if acquiring Robbie Ray is strictly for relief deployment in October?
i still hurled. we have enough lefty drek that do mop up duty when we are down 16-5