The Yankees are still in the process of gathering information on Gerrit Cole’s elbow after he reported difficulty recovering between starts and underwent an MRI on Monday. In the meantime, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports that they’ve made a new offer to the White Sox regarding right-hander Dylan Cease. Prior reporting on the talks between the two teams have indicated that the Yankees have refused to include outfield prospect Spencer Jones in any package for Cease, and Nightengale notes that Jones once again is not included in the new offer.
Trade talk surrounding Cease has died down in the latter stages of the offseason. White Sox GM Chris Getz has steadfastly held his asking price in negotiations throughout the offseason — an ask that other teams have deemed exorbitant.
If the Yankees indeed go outside the organization to bolster their staff, there’s some sense to preferring a trade to, say, signing a free agent like Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery. Snell and Montgomery would come with huge annual salaries that are magnified by the 110% luxury tax the Yankees would pay for any additions at this point, given the current state of their payroll. Snell, in particular, would cost the Yankees their second-highest draft pick and $1MM of space from next year’s international amateur free agency pool, as he rejected a qualifying offer from the Padres. Cease has also been in camp with the White Sox, pitching in spring training games and building up for the season. Snell and Montgomery are surely working out on their own in preparation for the season, but that’s not necessarily the same as working in game settings. Cease wouldn’t come with any questions about whether he’d be ready for Opening Day, whereas a free-agent pickup at this point in the offseason calendar very much could.
Cease, the 2022 American League Cy Young runner-up, is earning $8MM this season and is controllable through the 2025 season via arbitration. He’s coming off a down year, having posted a pedestrian 4.58 earned run average in 177 frames with somewhat diminished averaged fastball velocity (96.9 mph in ’22, 95.8 mph in ’23). But Cease maintained strong strikeout numbers, missed bats at a plus level and was to some extent hampered by a .330 average on balls in play that was 46 points higher than his career mark entering the season. Other teams clearly view him as a playoff-caliber starter — evidenced by the widespread demand for him this winter — and the White Sox don’t seem likely to lower their asking price substantially, knowing they can also extract a substantial trade return for Cease this summer as long as he remains healthy.
Holding Cease with an eye toward the deadline presents the Sox with an obvious risk, as pitcher attrition in the sport is an inevitability. That’s underscored by the very reason the Yankees have apparently reengaged the White Sox on Cease. Cole and Cease have been the game’s two most durable starters for the past four years. Since 2020 (Cease’s first full season in MLB), Cease leads all big league pitchers with 109 starts. Cole’s 108 rank second, tying him with Aaron Nola and Jose Berrios. Even the most durable pitchers eventually break down, and if Cease incurs any kind of notable injury in the season’s first half, holding him will go down as a major setback in the White Sox’ rebuilding efforts.
Risk notwithstanding, the Sox have held firm in their asking price and seem prepared to wait until July if that price is not met. With regard to the Yankees, that includes Jones, a towering 6’6″ outfielder who’s drawn comparisons to Aaron Judge due to his physical size and his immense raw power. It’s unfair to expect any hitter to develop to Judge’s level, but the pure physical traits are similar. Baseball America credits Jones with plus power (60 on the 20-80 scale), while FanGraphs gives him a plus-plus rating (70-grade) in that department. Jones, who hit .267/.336/.444 between High-A and Double-A in his age-22 season last year, currently ranks 15th among all prospects at FanGraphs, 33rd at Baseball Prospectus, 46th at BA, 56th at ESPN and 84th at MLB.com.
Even if the Yankees remain unwilling to include Jones in an offer for Cease, the farm system is stacked with top-100 talents and with quality names behind that high-end contingent. Each of outfielder Jasson Dominguez, outfielder Everson Pereira, catcher Austin Wells, righty Chase Hampton, righty Will Warren and shortstop Roderick Arias has drawn top-100 fanfare on multiple lists. The overall depth of the system is considered strong as well, ranking sixth at ESPN, seventh at The Athletic, ninth at Baseball America and 11th at MLB.com.
The White Sox, who fired longtime baseball operations leaders Rick Hahn and Kenny Williams last summer, have been working to reshape the organization since shaking up the top end of the front office. Getz flatly stated that he “didn’t like our team” at the beginning of the offseason. Since taking the GM reins, he’d traded relievers Aaron Bummer and Gregory Santos, moved on from shortstop Tim Anderson and made a series of acquisitions to improve the club’s pitching depth and defense — two longstanding issues. Trading Cease would be his most significant transaction to date.
HeyBroItsBrad
Just. Pay. Snell
Lars MacDonald
Don’t pay Snell.
Arnold Ziffel
He wants to get his, I hope the jerk has over played his hand and him and Boras get much less than they figured. Boras is then worst.
Greensoxbaseball
I’d be so happy if they payed Snell UNLESS he got hurt lmao
Angry Disgruntled Sox Fan
You can’t predict injuries. They didn’t predict it with Rodon, nor did Sox predict Giolito.
BaseballClassic1985
They aren’t getting Snell
roob
Now the bidding for Cease starts to take off. Other teams get involved and he’s gone for a big haul before opening day.
Snell and Montgomery way overplayed their hands.
Simm
Unlikely
padam
They didn’t. Boras did.
Robertowannabe1
They ultimately have the final say so. They agreed with Boras so Snell, Montgomery, and Boras all overplayed their hands.
deweybelongsinthehall
Regardless, young talent has a price depending on your evaluation and while I wouldn’t pay Snell due to his inconsistencies, I would pay Montgomery (not the same rate) i. lieu of giving up talent for Cease. Say what you want about ownership but Boston dipping under the threshold is a big advantage for when they again spend. Should have been one year earlier but in any event they need to recognize their on the verge of losing fans big-time. While they anticipate people coming to Fenway as an attraction, they won’t be spending on merchandise like true fans do.
DeferredFan
None of them did. They’re going to get paid.
nukeg
You. Don’t. Understand. The. Luxury. Tax.
JoeBrady
FWIW, everyone knows that the NYY, like others, are over the tax limit and Snell would cost double his salary, much like Stroman.
But some people consider this the cost for doing business in big markets. The alternative to signing Snell is to maybe miss the playoffs, or trade away part of the farm.
All three alternatives will cost different amounts of money.
Greensoxbaseball
Oh wow i didn’t even realize Stroman is costing them double. It goes per year though right? They should be under next year
rottenboyfriend
The problem with making trades with the Yankees is their over hyped prospects never amount to much! The Yankees need a quality arm to replace Cole and Cease is that for 8M this year! Other than Judge tell me the last Yankee prospect who developed into a star for the team that traded for him? If I’m the White Sox unless the Yankees put Jones in the deal I wait till the trade deadline! Without a quality starter to replace Cole the Yankee season is over before it even begins. Once the Cole news is confirmed the cost for his replacement will be even higher!
BaseballClassic1985
Just because Cease isn’t going to cost a lot of money doesn’t mean he’s a difference maker. If Cole is done for the year, Cease isn’t catapulting them to the WS. Hard pass.
deweybelongsinthehall
Montgomery to me comes to mind. While he’s not a true superstar, he is a star based on the money being mentioned.
BaseballClassic1985
I’d take Monty all day over Cease and Snell
luclusciano
Monty is great, but he’s a supporting role. He’s not an ace, and if the Yankees want to be competitive (without Cole) they need an ace.
Greensoxbaseball
agree but i feel like Cease is kind of the middle of what Snell/monty are lol
larkraxm
Which was the last team that traded a veteran for a haul of prospects, and one or more of those prospects developed into a star for that team? It’s hard to do, that is why stars are expensive. I’m not sure why people say that the Yankees prospects are overhyped. This isn’t 1980. Prospects are rated by independent actors using advanced metrics. No team is making trades based on the Yankees’ hype man talking up terrible players. They have several prospects that are highly regarded by outside evaluators.
Very Barry
Dylan Cease, Sandy Alcantara
larkraxm
Cease has had one good season followed by a couple of ok ones, and Alcántara has had one good season followed by a career threatening injury. Both are nice pitchers, neither of them are stars.
SCOTTG3
He’d cost them minimum $50-60m per year b/c of their luxury tax penalties. Ain’t gonna happen.
luclusciano
Per year *that they are over the bracket.
Fred Lingenfelser
With taxes, they’ll be paying way more than the amount that will de due to him.
disgustingomar
Yeah snells 30 million salary goes to 65 for this year. There not signing snell
178iq
They can’t afford snell with the tax. They have to trade for an arm. Like Soto, they can only trade. They can not sign…
JoeBrady
178iq
They can’t afford snell with the tax.
===================
Of course they can. If they could afford Stroman at almost the same tax rate, then they can afford Snell. One can question the wisdom of the Cohen/Preller spending model, but if they paid the tax for Stroman, they can certainly pay the tax for Snell.
lamars
Bruh, if the Yankees could afford Snell he would already be on the team.
JoeBrady
No. After the NYY and Snell broke off talks, they went on to sign Stroman. If they could afford Stroman, they could afford Snell.
lamars
Joe, like you stated they broke off talks and signed Stroman. The Yankees are 110% over the luxury tax and can’t sign Snell or Montgomery without paying double the luxury tax. If they sign either for $100m then the Yankees would have to pay $200m for the luxury tax. Do you see the Yankees doing this??
luclusciano
Luxury tax is based on the year you are over, so if it’s a long term deal that is backloaded, it works better.
drasco036
The Yankees have spent 490 million dollars?!?!?
drasco036
That isn’t how it works.
JoeBrady
If they sign either for $100m then the Yankees would have to pay $200m for the luxury tax. Do you see the Yankees doing this??
===========================
No, but they can. Every FA the Yankees sign for eternity might be in the 110% bracket, They are already in for $190M next year, and that includes Stanton, Rodon, DJ and Cole.. I’ll gladly listen to their options
roiste
Luxury tax hits are determined by the average annual net present value of the contact. Front or back-loading the contract doesn’t impact the hit as long as the AAV stays the same
brucenewton
Stroman pushed them over by 10 million. His contract isn’t taxed at 110%. The next one will be. Snell and Monty aren’t coming. Cease would cost less dollars. Could see it if they are willing to part with the necessary prospects. They won’t. Lorenzen is probably their guy now.
drasco036
No players contract is taxed.
178iq
They can’t. The can only trade.
Dorothy_Mantooth
Reports are that the Yankees brought in over $650M in revenue last season. Right now, the Yankees payroll & penalty penalty payments total well over $300M for 2024. So the Yankees certainly have the revenue income to pay an additional $60M-$70M+ for 1 year of Snell or Monty (2024 salary + 110% penalty), the only question is how this impacts their profitability. There is no question that the Yankees operating costs outside of payroll are in the $100s of millions of dollars so it comes down to how much adding one of these players impacts their profitability for 2024. A deal with either could possibly result in an overall P&L loss for the team (on paper), but they certainly have the cash flow to sign either one with no issues.
drasco036
650
-100 million in minor league operations
-300 million payroll
-100 million in profit sharing
So we have 150 million
– other operating costs
– tax money going to the state of New York
-73 some million for Snell?
Mrski
Snell would rather wait then sign with the Yankees.
dasit
bad sign for cole
sascoach2003
Exactly. That’s my takeaway from this as well.
dasit
yankees front office has zero credibility when it comes to info regarding injuries. if cole is getting multiple opinions it’s likely he will miss significant time. statements regarding judge’s “abdominal issue” should also be considered BS until proven otherwise
Joe says...
dasit I agree but in regards to Judge, he said himself the results of the MRI were good and if it was the regular season he would still be playing. I’m optimistic about him. Cole, not so much.
dasit
hope you’re right
waiting for cole news has me in pessimistic panic mode
ws_champs
They were going to go for Cease at the deadline anyway. An injured Cole, even for a few weeks, just expedites this move.
Remember, they were looking for a #2 starter even with Cole in play throughout the whole offseason.
dasit
this is the internet. please stop with these calm and rational takes
MrMet1979 2
Cashman hasn’t done the best job with the resources that were given to him. There’s a reason the Yankees haven’t been in the WS for 15 years. That Donaldson trade and the Montgomery trade would’ve most likely got another GM fired. Picking up Stanton’s contract for 12 years and paying Ellsbury and Hicks also turned out to be huge mistakes. Sonny Gray is a good pitcher who failed in NY that wasn’t Cashman fault but Frankie Montas was. He mismanaged the payroll to the point where players who were interested in playing for the Yankees(Verlander, Harper, Machado) were ultimately forced to play in lesser markets because he couldn’t make it work financially. And were not even going to talk about firing a seasoned manager like Girardi for his good friend Aaron Boone who’s been learning on the job for five years now.
BaseballClassic1985
Dylan Cease lol Cashman better not even think of trading Wells for this average pitcher. Pereira, Peraza and probably Ben Rice are being offered. Hell no on SpencerJones.
Jabronie23
lol Cease isn’t just an average pitcher. He’s averaged like 4.5 fWAR over the last three seasons
BaseballClassic1985
Oh well, if he’s averaged a 4.5 fWAR, then that’s a whole new ballgame /sarc. You, nor any reader or writer on this site, has any idea what that means. Lol
bkbk
If this is troll, its A++++ responses. If not, its wild.
Canuckleball
He’s averaged 4.2 fWAR over the last 3 years, actually… Math is fun.
Other ways to describe him include:
– A pitcher who in 3 of the last 4 seasons has an ERA of 3.91. or worse
– A pitcher who had his career lowest fastball velocity last year
– A pitcher who pitches in the softest offensive division in MLB and still only has 1 out of 5 seasons where he had numbers like an ace, and it wasn’t last year
hyraxwithaflamethrower
Or a guy with a FIP marks of 3.41, 3.10, and 3.72 the last three years. Or the guy who’s been among baseball’s most durable starters the last few years and is probably getting around $24M combined this year and next (and that’s if he has a great 2024).
Cease is a mixed bag. You’d have to be a troll to not see the upside, and a total homer to ignore the walk rate, which cuts into how deep he goes in games. I think with a better defense behind him, he will be about halfway between 2022 and 2023 versions, which is not as good as Cole, but is a lot more valuable than some commenters are giving him credit for.
mlb1225
Cease also has the 23rd highest flyball rate the last three seasons. I’d question if his FIP would rise significantly with that high of a FB% in Yankee stadium and playing in the AL East, compared to the AL Central and in Guaranteed Rate Field.
tpaine69
Chicagos field is more hitter friendly than YS.
drasco036
You do realize that a lot of pitchers are pitching higher up in the zone and that leads to a lot more weakly hit fly balls right?
These are the pitchers with a higher fly ball rate than Cease last year:
Christian Javier
Garrett Cole
Zac Gallen
Logan Gilbert
Justin Verlander
Jordan Montgomery
Zach Wheeler
Aaron Nola
Max Scherzer
Spenser Strider
Louis Castillo
Pablo Lopez
In other words, who cares?
mlb1225
Yankee Stadium is the 3rd most home run friendly ballpark over the last three years per Statcast and their park factors. GRF is the 15th most home run friendly park. The only issue is that Cease wasn’t good at inducing weakly hit flyballs last year. He was 23rd percentile of exit velocity and 32nd percentlie of hard hit rate.
I’d be more concerned how he’d fare facing AL East teams more frequently. The Twins, who were the best team in the ALC last year would have been the fourth best team in the ALE in 2023. It’s arguably the best division right now.
Very Barry
No Spencer Jones = No Deal
Spencer Jones, Roderick Arias, Chase Hampton and the LaLane kid. You can keep Dominguez. Jones, Arias, Hampton and LaLane …. Nothing less!
hyraxwithaflamethrower
You’re making Getz look lenient in his demands. It won’t and shouldn’t take that much…not that I’d complain if Cashman temporarily lost his mind enough to do that.
BaseballClassic1985
Lololololol
Anthony maresca
Lmao! That pkg would land an ACE with 2-3 yrs team control something Cease is NOT. Get a clue!
Very Barry
Cease is controlled for both the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
TB Sox NY
The answer is to then trade that package for a guy that fits your needs.A so called ace.Every team says they have an ace.How many genuine ace’s are there?
JoeBrady
Where does this come from? Is it like a test of bravado or something? YOU MUST PAY DOUBLE OR NO DEAL!
If you want to keep Cease, go ahead. Or if you think he’ll be worth more at the trade deadline, and you are willing to take the injury risk, go ahead. But much like the local real estate market, you aren’t getting twice as much as someone is worth.
Very Barry
Fine …. Don’t pay! …… Let’s see how this season goes for you ….. Let’s see if after this season you can then keep Juan Soto from putting on that Mets jersey for the next 10 years.
BaseballClassic1985
I hope the Mets “steal” Soto from the Yanks. He’s a butcher in RF and an awful baserunner,too. He was picked off 2nd the other day…in a spring training game lol. Let’s the Mets pay him to walk and pimp every ball he hits in the air.
lamars
If Cole has to miss a significant amount of time then the WS has all the power and Jones will be a White Sox. There is no way the YAnkees can afford to sign Snell or Montgomery when being 110% over the luxury tax.
That means if they sign Snell to say $150m contract then they would have to pay $300m in luxury tax.
luclusciano
That’s not how that works. Luxury tax is based on the amount you are paying for that year, not the life of a contract.
drasco036
It’s based on the AAV for the year, not the amount you are paying.
Also, the Yankees already have 187 million committed to next years payroll, that doesn’t include the arbitration eligible players which was 23 million this season alone. So if you sign Snell for 30 million, Yankees are at 242 million (lowballing arbitration figures) that doesn’t include re-signing Soto, so it’s still reasonable to say Snell would cost you 200 million on a 100 million contract because the Yankees would almost certainly be in the top tier of the luxury, again, for the fourth straight year.
lamars
If the Yankees sign Snell or Montgomery they are subject to a 110% tax on every dollar of a new contract. So even if they did a 1 year $80m-$100m contract they would have to pay 110% on that dollar amount. Now we know Snell isn’t taking a 1 year deal.
DeepDownSouth
If Sox don’t get Spencer Jones in the deal they’ll be better off waiting until trade deadline when teams in contention realize he’ll be a upgrade, but that’s depending on his sabermatrics BS in 2024 by then bc Wins vs Loses don’t mean crap when they had the worse 3 year defensive metrics the last 3 years combined. People looking at Cease numbers last year & claiming he’s not a good picture should eliminate sabermatrics from their opinions. Sox sucked last year, but not bc of Cease
Aiden Awe
Exactly. Improved defense should benefit Cease and he doesn’t have Grandal to throw too.
mamss
Spencer Jones or bust
BaseballClassic1985
Good, Cease isn’t a difference maker. Jones has the potential to be. Chitcago can keep him.
SCOTTG3
Dumb take.
James123
jones is good, but i am betting that they are likely feilding offers from the Os built around different difference makers like Kjerstad and Cowser…. those 2 have a little less upside than jones, but a whole lot more floor.
wreckage
Wrong Spencer Jones linked.
Steve Adams
Ugh, thank you. Need to remember to check the link to his name whenever I mention him. The Baseball-Reference Javascript that automatically generates links to player profiles seems to oscillate between the current Spencer Jones and the former Rays minor leaguer at random.
It’s been updated. Appreciate it.
eznod
Who didn’t see this coming!!
NoSaint
Andrea Bocelli ?
gramuna12
To some of the Yanks prospects “Time to say goodbye”.
vaderzim
King’s Ransom.
mrmackey
Already traded King to the Pads.
JoeBrady
And Cody Ransom retired a while back.
tigers182
Yankees prospects always get overhyped as websites try to appease their largest base. Thats why painfully few Yankees prospects ever do anything in the majors.
bob9988 2
How many thumbs up can i give to a post!
gramuna12
1
ws_champs
How many first round picks or top 100 prospects from each year end up becoming stars like they are projected? This is why the Padres took so many players — one of them is bound to work out.
Who do the Nationals have from the first trade that have developed into a star yet?
James123
top 10 tends to be 50% allstars or better, 3-4 ho hum big leaguers and 1-2 injuries or total wash outs. As you get further downt the list it only gets worse.
by the back end of the top 100 it is really hit and miss.
The reality is that if you look at a guy like Ceses you are likely getting 2 years of 4 WAR ball…. so you need to get that back in controllable return. a pair of back end top 100 prospects are likely to exceed that during their controllable years, but how valuable is a 4th OF that gets 1 WAR per year, or the 1 WAR middle releiver- even under team control (which is all those 2 would need to do).
bkbk
What Yankees homegrown have translated to allstars in the last decade?
Im genuinely curious and absolutely refuse to use Google or the plethora of free resources at my disposal.
CubsWin108
Aaron Judge
Gary Sanchez
Luis Serverino
Dellin Betances
eh, not rly a good list besides Judge
Dogleg62
Soon…Volpe too.
CubsWin108
we’ll see man, his stats werent that mindblowing
ws_champs
Robertson
Big Hurt
Betances was ridiculous for 5 years. He counts.
Astros_fan_in_Aus
Volpe ? Ha ha that is funny.
rottenboyfriend
Volpe hit 209 last season! R U kidding me?
Dogleg62
I said soon… he’s played 1 friggin year at the MLB level, and actually should’ve been sent back to AAA at some point last season. But for whatever reason, the Yanks kept him out there the entire year.
ws_champs
How many guys have the Yankees traded non-all star prospects for that were supposed to all-stars themselves but ended up just being busts?
Gallo, Gray, Montas, Stanton, Benintendi..
JoeBrady
It’s astonishing how many fans think prospects are pure risk, and that veterans are pure locks. EVERYONE is a risk.
Very Barry
Absolute Facts!!!!!
Yankee Clipper
So…..you think the Yankees prospects get traded based on the media’s rating of them?
A GM says, “hm, Yankees just made an offer with these respects, so instead of using our internal analytics, we’ll go ahead and approve the trade because the media ranks them well.”
Wellpact
Of course not but that don’t stop the gambler GM from overrating them, hugging them and making excuses later as to why they didn’t pan out. Hal and Trashman control the narrative, master spinners, and all y’all ignorantly argue over it while they laugh all the way to the bank. The best thing to happen to this team is to miss the playoffs again because they balked at trading Jones. Hope Hal loses $$$, it’s what they deserve for pretending like they are all in!
Yankee Clipper
Wellpact: I do agree on just about all of your points here. They do constantly spin, they do hug prospects unnecessarily they constantly overrate the prospects internally, and they have not been “all-in” as we typically define that term.
The one place where I’m not sold is on Hal not being all-in. For as many things as Hal doesn’t do that he should (ie, move on from Cashman), he does consistently spend. Now, I’m no Hal apologist, and he is the reason they didn’t make the moves they should have over the past five seasons to acquire pieces around Cole/Judge to win due to CBT implications. The ones they did acquire were partial or complete failures (that’s on Cashman).
Regardless, as I’ve said in numerous seasons past, they are gambling with Judge’s and Cole’s prime by not going for it all sooner. Now Cole may be out for a season (or more) and he and Judge are at the twilight of their prime years.
Buzzz Killington
So Clint Frazier for Dylan Cease is a no go?
sfu13
If Jones isn’t available, Cease isn’t available. I’d rather the White Sox hold on to him instead of trading him to the Yankees for the second coming of Jeff Gray Ian Clarkin and Blake Rutherford. Hard pass.
roob
Jones is not even their best prospoect. It’s Dominguez and they have plenty of other excellent prospects. They can do a deal without Jones.
mustache101
Best prospect doesn’t matter if they want jones give or don’t get…. Not giving up jones cost you Corbin burnes… if he’s not your “best” prospect why do teams want him??? You could have Burnes right now!!!!
Juggy
Well, aren’t we lucky that you’re not the GM
Yankee Clipper
So many people said the same of Juan Soto…… and yet, here we are.
CleaverGreene
Soto was due 30M and had one year until FA. Cease is waaaay underpaid and controlled for 2 more years. His value is a good deal more than Soto.
Yankee Clipper
Regardless of how you perceive his value, it doesn’t change that people said precisely the same about trading for Soto.
My point was not a direct comparison between trade values of Soto/Cease because that is impossible to know, given the innumerable variables that exist. My point was to illustrate how often people say these types of things regarding a trade, and how often they are wrong.
mustache101
That’s true his value vs price adds a lot of value
DaddyDann
Yankees will need Jones and Dominguez when Verdugo and Soto leave next year…
padam
Wouldn’t hurt if Verdugo left now.
NicolasT
Man this makes me think there’s bad news on cole. Hopefully they do get cease if Cole is our long term
Very Barry
You already knew it was bad news when they said they would seek “multiple opinions”. The fact that they are already trying to get Cease just seals the fate of Cole.
We ain’t giving Cease away …. If the Yankees want Cease ….. It is gonna hurt!
JoeBrady
I cannot even keep track of the number of times I hear this, only to see it blow up. It’s like the Panther fans crowing that if you want Brian Burns, it’ll cost you more than two #1s. And then wind up with a 2 & a 5.
Yankee Clipper
Or like Juan Soto……
mustache101
Not a white Sox fan but why wouldn’t they ask for the moon it’s a bad division they could get lucky and win it that’s a lot of extra money for them!!! A lot more than his salary!!! He has extra value to them… why not wait till the deadline that division is winnable over pay or why not keep him:.. they will make more money if they can make the playoffs in a bad division if not they can move him at the deadline
Aiden Awe
I want the White Sox to “try” to compete in the division even if the expectations are low for them. Look at the 2023 Reds for example.
julyn82001
What are the one players exactly Sox want on the Cease potential trade with the Yankees? Spencer seems out of discussions…
hyraxwithaflamethrower
Sox would want Hampton and one of their other prized OF. Not saying that’s fair or the Yankees would do it, but I’m guessing that’ll be the ask. Lot of deals on btv centering on Arias. He’s good, but still so far away I’m not sure how interested the Sox would be. They are deluding themselves into thinking they can contend before Robert leaves, but any trade for Cease will still be with that aim in mind.
DaddyDann
Also, I heard from a guys uncles mothers brother that Stanton for Cease straight up is a done deal
Dogleg62
Nah, Stanton to LAA for Rendon, after the Angels sign JD Davis. 😉
This one belongs to the Reds
Just when I thought the trade rumors had Ceased.
acoss13
A Cease and Desist is in order!
bob9988 2
Cease this nonsense!
CubsWin108
stfu with these coleny puns
Inside Out
Much better than wasting $60 million or more for one year of Snell. Yankees obviously know Cole is out for extended period
CubsWin108
Idk if Cease is who the Yankees wanna go after, give some one year deal to one of Snell, Bauer, Monty, Clevinger… Dylan Cease’s advanced stats are not good, everything was down last year. If yall want more info, Foolish Baseball did his “5 Players I dislike” and Dylan Cease was one of the them on his list.
Lloyd Emerson
I’m kind of mystified as to why Mike Clevinger remains unsigned. 3.3 bWAR in 2023, seems like he would still be able to contribute positively.
CubsWin108
like Bauer, he has a bad reputation… even no theres been no suspension or arrests, all what it takes it one allegation and rumors of “lockeroom cancer”
padam
There’s a reason for the allegations and reputation. Also evidenced by the relatively short stays with each of the teams he’s played with.
CleaverGreene
The ‘Locker room cancer’ is not a rumor, it’s well documented.
HatlessPete
Monty and snell aren’t gonna take straight 1 year deals. Bauer is an especially bad fit for the yanks for numerous reasons. Clevinger…idk maybe he doesn’t wanna cut his metal mane lol.
hyraxwithaflamethrower
3.7 fWAR is actually better than Corbin Burnes did last year, and more total the last two years than Burnes. Nobody denies that he walks too many guys and this cuts into his value, but your post seems like a Cubs fan upset that they gave him and Eloy away for almost nothing.
CubsWin108
chill, its not just deep, got nothing vs cease
mustache101
Wait what??? You would rather have him than burnes???? Get off the drugs my friend….. your saying he’s better then Burnes… not even close my friend but I respect your wrong opinion
Very Barry
Of course you hate Cease ….. You traded Cease and Eloy Jimenez for Jose Quintana.
CubsWin108
got nothing againist cease, Im just commenting how some experts are critical of his performance
JoeBrady
I think it is less being critical, and more that perhaps the WS fans are being unrealistic.
No Salary Cap For You! (Come Back One Year)
LOL at anyone who thinks Bauer will ever throw a mlb pitch again. Why not Champion Julio Urias? Im sure he is out there for next to nothing at this point.
CubsWin108
urias has been arrested, bauer was never arrested.
Marcell Ozuna was arrested twice, hes still in MLB
Chapman arrested for speeding, fired gunshots, still in league
Roberto Osuna arrested, got offers from Padres this offseason
I wont pull the race card, even tho theres evidence. But I will pull how Bauer was very ciritcally of Manfred and exposing sticky substances. Is it not possible hes been blacklisted for that reason?
DeepDownSouth
What is Foolish Baseball? I’ve bever even heard of them in my many years of heavy duty baseball fan. A websites opnion just like MLBTR opinions is nothing but opinions & absolutely not Facts. Cease being on worse defensive team in years played a huge factor.
CubsWin108
hes a baseball channel that does baseball videos, he has a 2nd channel called foolish bailey with secondary content
brucenewton
Cashman trying to get something for nothing.
Joe says...
Since none of the rest of us know what the offer actually is how about clueing us in.
hetzel01
If you have Dominguez, Stanton, Judge and potentially Soto locked in for the next 4 years, what do you do with Jones? I know Stanton is just around to be a part time DH, but he’s on the payroll for a lot of cash thru 2027. Remember Andujar…Peraza now has no value. There is a reason they’re called prospects.
padam
Doesn’t mean they have to play Stanton.
Raysasineppswasplanted
I’ve read hetzel that da nyy plans to put AJ on foist starting in ’25 and slide Spenza Jauns on the OF and Stanon will exclusively be a dh. Sounds reasonable don’t ya think?
Mehmehmeh
Interesting. I certainly respect Cease as a great player with high upside. But more than anything this report sounds like an intentional leak to impact negotiations with Boras FAs.
whiteysox
Boras is also Cease’s agent
Os1995
Boras isnt involved in the discussions for trades if there isnt a no trade clause in place. The bluff could still work.
Johnny utah
Not a yankee fan but hate to see talent go down like this. Hope cole heals quick. Seems like pitchers dropping like flies every day
PiratesPundit51
If the Red Sox had any sense, they’d get in on the act just to drive up the cost for the Yankees. Name drop Marcelo Mayer without any intention of actually trading him, then watch the Yankees panic and add Jones to their proposal.
James Midway
White Sox were asking for the moon before. I think the price just went up. I think Dominguez get the conversation started but they will want a lot more.
Joe says...
Any mention of Dominguez will abruptly end the conversation.
James Midway
I would hope so from an NY perspective, but the Sox are going to want the moon.
Raysasineppswasplanted
Probably a three team old fashion trade: the sox could end up getting Dominguez Jones Trout and Volpe x Cease and Eloy. That’s fair enough don’t ya thoink?
Old York
Talk about desperation.
Juggy
Plus, people gotta understand that Cole. Will opt that at the end of the season, especially after what Wheeler received. Believe that.
Michael K. Igawa
The Yanks can void the opt-out by tacking on another year at $35 million.
MLB Top 100 Commenter
If he is healthy enough
JoeBrady
Not if he gets bad news on the injury.
Salzilla
I have mixed feelings here. I like Cease, and understand wanting not to pay Snell, but is paying up in more prospects worth it? Like I shudder to think what’s getting this done. And Cease isn’t replacing Cole. He’s another Rodon #2 type. Snell, on the other hand, could honestly replace Cole, heck it’s Cy Young for Cy Young. It’s not like for like of course, because Cole is elite, but I’d feel better with Snell than Cease.
That said, they honestly need two starters now. I’d maybe grab a cheap Lorenzen too.
Ugh, obviously though most importantly this is signaling a significant injury for Cole and that’s terrible. My best to him.
SCOTTG3
Comparing Rodon who is hurt more than not to Cease who has more starts than G Cole the last 4 years is idiotic.
Salzilla
Cease has had 3 full seasons of starts thus far and if we throw out last year since Rodon was indeed hurt and just go by 21-22 they’re very similar and I’d say Rodon might be better. So no not really idiotic as you so kindly put, and I’ll also kindly ask not to ever compare Dylan Cease to GERIT COLE.
C Yards Jeff
I agree. With all the injuries around the league play it extra safe. Get 2 starters. To me, that’s FA Clevinger and FA Lorenzen. Cease, no, don’t give up prospect(s).
Salzilla
I just don’t think neither are moving the needle much in terms of playoffs. Unfortunately if you lose a big pitcher and want to contend you do need to get another big pitcher. They’ll have to pay up one way or another.
Scott Kliesen
Be a helluva pivot by Yankees if they can pull it off. Let’s face it, without Cole they’re not winning anything without making a major move. This certainly qualifies as major.
Lefty_Orioles_Fan
Amazing how the Yankees don’t have time for Scott Boras and his Merry Minions aka Pitchers
Or they also want to avoid Bauer and so do the rest of the teams
It’s also very strange as to who gets second chances and who does not
avenger65
Getz is a moron. He either wants has-beens at low salaries or some highly touted prospects which teams rightly don’t want to part with for the only decent P he has. Getz talks about P and D,but no mention of offense. Kopech, the no. 3 SP, had another bad outing yesterday, lasting a whopping 2.1ninnings. Fedde, Kopech, whoever, in the rotation is a disaster. His criteria for getting rid of TA, Hendricks, etc. is all down to their salaries. Cease and Robert are the only reason to watch the Sox. With Cease leaving and Robert close behind, there will be no redeeming quality left. Getz destroyed the Royals farm system, which earned him the same job with the Sox. He’s also driven their farm system into the ground, which in jr world earned a promotion to GM. The team Getz has masterfully put together is currently a stunning 3-18 in ST.
cwsOverhaul
Bad take Avenger. WSox simply wanted Westburg as headliner to be future 2B instead of utility Ortiz to headline the deal. Not even sure they wanted DL Hall as 2nd piece since he is a lefty project similar to Crochet.
Getz has smart Barfield from DBacks assisting him to sort through rejecting fool’s gold prospects that throw 100/future TJS candidates. They will go after someone who can pitch as a starter rather than max effort throw OR a position player that is mostly developed with decent work ethic. The last regime is who worshiped top 100 lists rather than substantive evaluation.
Benjamin101677
I think they should just go get Montgomery no draft pick associated with him; he would be cheaper than snell and they won’t have to give up prospects for him.
ChuckyNJ
You’d still be paying double for Montgomery cos the Yankees are so far over the top on the luxury tax.
acoss13
I think Cease being on a winning team and maybe with Matt Blake as a pitching coach, he’d go back to being a pitcher with a 3.50 ERA, high strikeouts and 180 to 200 innings of work. Cease was just on a really bad White Sox team last year. He won’t replace Cole, that’s an impossible task but he’s a good option to have I believe. Hopefully Cole is alright and just needs rest.
HiredGun23
Either Getz or Cashman is going to get fleeced. It will be a lopsided trade. Who is you money on? I’m betting it’s Cashman…
SCOTTG3
Ain’t about that. Cease is the most durable SP over the last 4 years with +stuff. They either pay the going rate for a #1/2 SP or go away. Sox ain’t desperate, already have eyes on an All Star Break trade. Either of the 2 top OF prospects or forgetaboutit.
HiredGun23
Do you think the Yankees will bite? Or go the free agent route?
ibuititnoonecame
Snell is not an ace
hyraxwithaflamethrower
His two CYA’s beg to differ. What he’s not is dependable, as he has only 2 seasons over 130 IP.
ibuititnoonecame
An ace has to be available
SupremeZeus
Presumably, the Yankees evaluated Dylan Cease this past offseason and calculated his projected value/performance for the next two seasons. That evaluation does not change b/c of unexpected injuries. Any drastic change in draft capital offered for Cease would be attributed to desperation.
hyraxwithaflamethrower
They might also have been granted permission to scout him in ST, check if the velo is back after being down a tick last year. Largely I agree, though. Doesn’t necessarily make it a bad move for them. I highly doubt they win the division without bolstering their rotation, so it’s either do something a little desperate or have a very good chance of wasting a year.
cwsOverhaul
Yanks chose last time to pay Stroman almost 40mil rather than cough up a prospect or 2 that hurt for Cease or Luzardo. Makes sense for deep pocket teams to take that risk.
Best they can do now to avoid trades is Clevinger for simply cash (excluding top 2 Boras FAs of course). WSox won’t fleece anyone, but they do have to evaluate substance rather than groupthink industry rankings to clean up the mess.
Armaments216
Why not use those prospects to offload some dead money. Stanton plus prospects for Patrick Corbin. Cover innings this season and clear out the books.
josiahdd
Trevor Bauer.
roiste
will never pitch in MLB again <3
damancash
I’m not saying That the guy should get a pass for everything he may or may not have done but Justice has been served and he has paid his legal debt to society..
The Yankee’s need to sign him, make sure he has The support he will surely need to deal with all the negativity that is bound to come his way
Wouldn’t it be Quite satisfying to see Bauer on the mound out in LA This October out pitching His counterpart Who The Yankees had So dearly coveted just a few months ago.
User 3180623956
As my ole pal Palpatine would say: “Do it!” Give in and complete the decimation of the farm.
This one belongs to the Reds
I still doubt they will take one of Jeter’s old girlfriends, one of Babe Ruth’s broken bats and Mickey Mantle’s old knee braces for this guy.
DR2020
Yankees need another pitcher, regardless if the outcome of Cole’s tests, this is a good start.And it appears they would rather give up some prospects, than spend.
And many say get Bauer, but teams obviously don’t want the drama and infamy that is associated with him now.
NicoHoerndawg
Getz certainly should hold out and get exactly what he wants from the Yankees. Bend them over and…
Yankees reek of desperation and have no upper hand in this. Make them over pay. They’re the Yankees. If they wanna cheap out and not pay all those taxes and lose international money… don’t let them off the hook.
I.M. Insane
White Sox should stand their ground. The Yankees are desperate. Let them pay or go away.
RickEO
Yankees are an 80 win club as of today
whyhayzee
Cole and Cease have been the game’s two most durable starters for the past four years. Since 2020 (Cease’s first full season in MLB), Cease leads all big league pitchers with 109 starts. Cole’s 108 rank second.
We have burned out Cole, let’s trade for Cease.
Really stupid.
Wagner>Cobb
This makes more sense than signing Snell The team has more options than acquiring Snell for the fee he is demanding. It is also not clear that Snell will outperform Cease this year. Cease has had a normal Spring build up. Snell, notoriously questionable on durability, could miss most or all of Spring Training.
99socalfrc
LOL, Cole gets hurt and Snell and Montgomery still can’t get their asking price.
I bet both of them wish they had a different agent. There was surely a sizeable market for both from the get go, that they ended up here is a disaster.
Joe says...
I saw Trevor Plouffe talking about this very thing yesterday. He believes Boras is spinning it to the players that it’s the teams at fault and they’re just low balling them.
99socalfrc
Boras loves to try and leverage teams into getting what he wants. He’s really shot himself in the foot here though as Snell & Montgomery are both left handed starters. So any team with interest can wait until one of them caves. The teams are actually playing Boras’s clients against each other here.
Nice work Boras. LOL
Wagner>Cobb
He should’ve encouraged Monty to sign early for 5 years (right after the Gray signing) and had Snell wait because his earning power is much higher.
Likewise, he should’ve advised Chapman to sign early, perhaps after Candelario. A five year deal was also realistic at that point and maybe the Dbacks could’ve been courted for a contract of that size as opposed to trading for Suarez. Bellinger could’ve waited and probably signed for a better deal if the market had thinned out that soon. Everything has been pushed to the last minute though.
Ma4170
Boras tries to “set the market” with certain guys when their value is already clear to everyone. Often a team will get desperate and meet the ask, but not always as we’re seeing now.
Nick W
If I’m trading top prospects I’d rather have Luzardo. I think he has higher upside
SCOTTG3
No Dominguez, no Jones, no dice…
mlbnyyfan
As always Yankees are desperate. They always overreact out of desperation. IMO The Yankees should have traded Torres for a pitcher. Move DJ back to 2B and signed Chapman to play 3B. Why are the Yankees keeping Torres it’s crazy. At least get something for him now. He’s not staying especially if the Yankees are planning to overspend to keep Soto and Cole.
BannedMarlinsFanBase
So, we’re getting reports every time a big media team makes a trade offer for a player? Is this coverage going to be balanced so we can know every single time the Pirates, Royals, Marlins, and Rays make a trade offer for a player?
Well, since this is news, I’ll give a report.
Report: I have sent an email to Taylor Swift’s agent asking for a date. Let’s see if this happens or is newsworthy. I would add something about Mike Axisa to this since the article above involves his beloved Yankees, but I don’t think I want to get banned again for mocking the member of the “journalist” brethren again.
This one belongs to the Reds
MLB and their media is all about the large markets, led by their boy in the big NYC office. I accepted that realization long ago but will point it out every chance I get.
YankeesBleacherCreature
That holds true for any domestic media market in the entire world. It’s like saying repeatedly that more babies are born in CA than Wyoming every year.
BannedMarlinsFanBase
I get it, but they do it too much. Even in years when the Yankees, Red Sox and Mets don’t even make the playoffs, the offseason articles are more about them than it is about the actual Playoff teams or even the World Series Champion.
I’m sorry, but the teams that actually win something deserve the respect. Talk about those big market teams after you’ve made sure you’ve covered the actual winning teams.
LOL good one !!!!
The Pirates – Royals -Marlins and A’s should be disbanded … use what talent they have to spread around the other ML teams …. this will help bring the level of play up to a better standard … ML teams have players on their rosters that shouldnt be in the ML – more like AAA and AA – and the commish wants to add more teams ?
YankeesBleacherCreature
That’s silly. There will always be an equilibrium of talent on the field. If MLB wants to grow the sport, eliminating jobs and limiting revenue streams by contracting teams achieve the exact opposite.
DCartrow
Is Volpe the most overrated infield prospect since Jerry Kenny?
ullnvrknw
Give them jones and take Luis Roberts also
ullnvrknw
Dominguez,jones and warren for cease,Roberts !
Riga-Tony
Put down the bong…
Joe Robbins
That’s awesome Tony.
YankeesBleacherCreature
“Bob Nightengale reports…” Whatevs.
Mercenary.Freddie.Freeman
Sounds like no Spencer Jones no Dylan Cease. Just do it Cashman.
msqboxer
Cease is durable and is always in the top 10 in K’s per season. You can argue ERA and WHIP all you want but look at that defense that was behind him and the catcher he threw too. CWS aren’t getting Jones as all teams have an untouchable prospect. Fair value is the next three prospects that CWS want.
hockeyjohn
Fair value is whatever the White Sox want or there won’t be a deal.
brightly13
get trevor bauer NOW
Bababooney
Agreeing with you is such a guilty pleasure.
DanUgglasRing
This is a far better option than paying Snell something like 30MM AAV then taking another 33MM tax hit on top of that and still losing their second highest pick anyway. I think trade for cease and sign lorenzen then pray.
stwawk
ChiSox had an enormous ask for Cease from the Os, and I can’t imagine it being much different with the Yankees. The Yankees are notorious for trying to fleece other teams in trades, and surely they’re trying to pry Cease for close to free of charge from the Sox, so this won’t go anywhere. I don’t have much confidence Cease is going to be wearing any uniform other than his current until the deadline.
Bababooney
Isn’t Snell just thin Rodon with a better attitude?
The Saber-toothed Superfife
Tiger’s FO, asleep as usual.
The Saber-toothed Superfife
Why does no one like or talk Cleavinger? Is he injured or burned out? No news. He must not be expected to play?
Riga-Tony
His clubhouse reputation and overall demeanor are supposedly not great, but he had no issues with the White Sox last year, I’d argue he was their best pitcher in the second half.
Buzzz Killington
Yankees should’ve retooled this off-season. Trade rentals and 1 year cheap flyer deals.
Riga-Tony
White Sox have the upper hand here, Yankees have expectations, So x don’t. Hold fast, get EXACTLY what you want.
LOL good one !!!!
I dont see anything special about Spencer Jones – Yanks need to put him in the package – right now he is just a suspect no one knows what he will turn out to be – go and get Cease – never mind the lux tax – you wanna win right – Yanks have the cash
LOL good one !!!!
You gotta spend money to make money
LordD99
Go sign Snell. Keep the prospects. Open your wallet, Hal.
brucenewton
Desperation.
Riga-Tony
Orioles should enter the chat-give the Sox what they want, now you command the East, you get an Ace and the Yankees have a broken rotation.
dano62
If Getz is rightly playing hardball, don’t be surprised if Cashman zags & meets the demands for Shane Bieber instead. Cleveland would then have cash to sign Lourenzen
brucenewton
Yankees won’t give up the necessary prospect cost and they won’t get Cease.
mbart33
Jones has done nothing throw him in a deal
Kyak
At this point Stanton is just wasting space. Eat the damn money and release him. Planning to play Judge in CF is not a smart move.
As for trading for a pitcher, I’m not moving Spencer Jones unless it’s a deal that greatly benefits the Yanks. Cease doesn’t do that for me based on how he looked last year.
Snell is due to regress outside of San Diego. Monty is one of my favorites,but his cost is too high adding in the luxury tax. The Montas trade is looking worse by the day. Sears or Gil would look really nice in the Yankee rotation.
mlbnyyfan
Yankees still have Gil. What about Wesneski for Effross. Both trades were awful as well as the Gallo trade where Yankees gave up a lot of assets as well.
mlbnyyfan
Stanton is a shell of himself and needs to go far way. Eat the cost and use roster spot for Soto and Judge to take turns playing DH. Keep them both fresh and healthy.
The Saber-toothed Superfife
The Tigers have Faedo, Brieske and a 160lb guy who is getting high accolades.
They could even take on Stanton, if he is willing.
And to resolve the issue, the Superfife knows exactly HOW TO DEAL WITH SCOTT BORAS (if they hire me, I can write the book) and how to help his remaining clients achieve thier salary goals.
It’s not hard to do, if its not all about you and how you can “win” by having it over on the other guy. Win-win situations are what we should be looking for.
Angry Disgruntled Sox Fan
Yankees are in trouble. Every time they get themselves in a hole with injuries to their high cost players.
Niekro floater
Think white Sox are gonna want more than Spenser Jones if Cole’s really hurt. Price will go up. Doesn’t look good, Yanks already kno his diagnosis and immediately start searching for another big game P. Baseball world is just waiting on consensus over what proper treatment will be : rest, rehab, or surgery.
LostYankeeinexile
Forget Cease,…. Call Cleveland and see what they want for Bieber. He’s looking sharp and I always thought he had the head in the game attitude that you need in NY…. Unless your name is Gleyber
Hard to walk with four balls
They better take the Yankees for all they have or no deal. No reason to give them a discount.
I remember when the Yankees could have had Verlander but held on to their farm system so the Astros could win a world series.
Yankee Mike
It doesn’t take days to get results of a MRI. Judge did his AFTER Cole and they already know he has a tweaked rib cage muscle. The Yankees are remaining tight lipped so they don’t get fleeced in a trade. Cole likely needs season ending surgery. The Braves won a title without Acuna Jr so it can happen. Just have to hope Gil, Beeter or Warren develop into real pitchers this year and the bats have to carry them.
Chicks dig bunting
Ok how many inggs has snell and cease pitched in the last 2 3years. Am ace pitches inggs. I don’t believe they pitching alot of inggs. Aces do now let’s see there era in the last 3 years
Chicks dig bunting
I’ll take Montgomery over cease and snell and he’s not an ace either but I think he has pitched mord inggs than them smell and cease. And maybe era might be close to
angels fan for life
Yankee always try to low ball a team snell won’t play in New York cause of the fans