Jon Heyman provides the Yankees with viable MLB trade deadline options

New York Post

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00:00The Yankees are getting ready for action after the All-Star break.

00:03They have a 53-43 record, but they've seen their place atop the ALE slip away.

00:09John Heyman is in studio with the Yankees' second half of the season preview.

00:14Have you enjoyed your break so far?

00:17Well, my break was being in Atlanta, Georgia covering the All-Star game.

00:20I enjoyed it, though. I enjoyed it.

00:22Hardest working man in baseball.

00:24So we're going to role play here a little bit to start things off.

00:27You're not John Heyman. You're Brian Cashman.

00:30Trade deadline is right around the corner.

00:31So what positions do you need to address for this?

00:34You start with an easy one. Third base.

00:37I mean, come on. They've got two guys hitting 149 at third base.

00:40You've got to replace that, right?

00:41I mean, Vivas, Peraza, good defensively, but you've got to be able to hit.

00:45You can't have a guy hitting 149, whether it be a placeholder like IKF or Renjifo

00:51or a star like Suarez, who I saw in Georgia.

00:55You have got to do something. Suarez would be fantastic.

00:58That's the first choice. Obviously, I don't even have to ask.

01:01It's so clear he's the best guy out there.

01:0331 home runs, 78 RBIs, leads the National League, good defensively.

01:07Ryan McMahon, good choice, very good defensively.

01:11He's come on, did not have a good April, but solid player with a reasonable contract.

01:15And I like Key Brian Hayes, who's a very, very good defensive, needs a change of scenery.

01:20But they've got a lot of choices out there, potentially.

01:22We're not sure Suarez is going to be available.

01:24That's the one little bit of an issue.

01:26He was kind of politicking while he was out there as well.

01:28Is that what you thought that was?

01:29That's politicking, John.

01:30You're reading between the lines.

01:31As a former player, when you're trying to get out of somewhere, you mention that team,

01:35how hungry they are and how they want to win.

01:36I will say this.

01:37It's an advantage to be traded if you're Suarez, because if they don't trade him,

01:41he's going to get slapped with that qualifying offer,

01:43and he's going to have to turn it down based on the year he had,

01:46and that's going to affect his free agency.

01:48So I think a lot of these guys on these teams that are on the cusp who are stars

01:52and will get that qualifying offer will want to go.

01:54That's pretty good you picked up that he won.

01:56I just thought he was being kind to the Yankees.

01:58He's good for you.

01:58I picked up on that.

01:59All right.

02:00Let's talk about the return of Luis Hill.

02:02He hasn't pitched in the majors all season,

02:05but he did have his first rehab start this week.

02:07He looked good.

02:08Aaron Boone pretty much said that he's not touching a major league mound

02:12until he's built up to throw about 85 to 90 pitches.

02:16That rotation has been completely decimated with injuries.

02:20Do you expect Luis Hill when he returns to make an immediate impact to the squad?

02:27Well, I'm not a doctor, but I'll say this.

02:28He was fantastic on the mound for the Yankees.

02:30A little bit of a blip there in the middle, but otherwise great rookie of the year.

02:34Well-deserved, terrific, talented arm.

02:37I mean, he was the most unhittable guy in the game for a little while,

02:40at least at the start of things.

02:42That would be huge if he is able to go.

02:44But as I said, I'm not a doctor.

02:46I can't predict.

02:47The lat is a tricky thing.

02:49They've been very cautious about it.

02:50Good for them.

02:51I mean, it always takes a while.

02:53It takes three months or more.

02:54We saw A.J. Minter go out for the year with the lat, right?

02:57He needed surgery.

02:58Hill was able to avoid the surgery, rehab it, and bring it back.

03:02I'm glad they're being cautious.

03:04That's the way to be about it.

03:06But, I mean, obviously they need him right now.

03:09They need that starter because they're going to miss Clark Schmidt in a big, big way.

03:12So, let's say they don't address a starter at the trade deadline,

03:17and it takes a little bit of time for Luis Hill to kind of get back to his A game.

03:22Do they have the bats to survive mediocre pitching or what the pitching is right now?

03:27I think their hitting is good.

03:29Obviously, they've gone through kind of a dry spell with that two six-game losing streaks.

03:33You know, obviously they've got Judge, the best hitter in the game.

03:35Nobody else has a 1,200 OPS or even an 1,100.

03:38He's over 1,200.

03:39I mean, their bats, I think, are pretty good.

03:42They'd like to be more right-handed.

03:43Suarez would help there as well.

03:46That would be a plus.

03:47But right now, I like their offense a lot.

03:50Grisham has done more than expected.

03:51I think Rice has shown pretty big power.

03:54I mean, obviously it's been a little bit of a disappointment for some of the kids, right?

03:58Volpe and Wells have not quite lived up to expectations.

04:01But overall, and Bellinger has been great lately, right?

04:04Overall, I think that Yankee offense is pretty darn good.

04:08Third base, they need to fill in, though, because you can't have a guy hitting 149 or two guys hitting 149.

04:13All right, let's look ahead a little bit.

04:14They're going into the back half of the season.

04:16They're on the two-game losing streak going into that.

04:19The two games behind the Blue Jays for first place in the division.

04:23They start off this back half three games in Atlanta, then three games up in Toronto to kick things off.

04:30When do you think that the Yankees are going to catch fire, like they've done in past years, and regain first place in the division?

04:37That sounds like a loaded question.

04:39I don't know.

04:40You're the guy to ask.

04:41I'm a Yankee fan.

04:42I don't know.

04:42I mean, look, I picked the Red Sox, so I'm not going to claim that the Yankees are definitely going to do it.

04:47I do think they're better than Toronto.

04:49Give Toronto credit.

04:50I think they've overachieved.

04:51They have a good team.

04:52I think the Yankees are a better team.

04:54I do think the Yankees will pass Toronto at some point.

04:57I'd watch out for Boston.

04:58They're on a 10-game winning streak.

05:00All right.

05:00So what's more likely to happen, then?

05:02Aaron Judge winning AL MVP or Max Freed winning the Cy Young Award?

05:06Oh, you gave me an easy one.

05:07Aaron Judge winning AL MVP.

05:09I asked him and Cal Raleigh in Atlanta, Georgia, is there a race, even a race, with Raleigh in it?

05:15And both of them gave the public nice answer, of course.

05:19It's up to you guys, whatever they said.

05:21At this point, I've talked to a few of us guys, and they still think Judge is the guy.

05:26I mean, to me, Raleigh's got 38 home runs.

05:29He's a catcher.

05:29He's on pace to obliterate the home run record for a catcher, 48 by Sal Perez.

05:35I mean, that's beating Johnny Bench, too.

05:37I mean, to be a catcher, to be squatting all that time and hitting 50 or 60 home runs, I've got to consider him.

05:44I really do.

05:45I mean, I know Judge is by far and away the best position player in baseball overall, but I think it's still a race.

05:51I do think Judge will win it, and I think he's more likely than Freed.

05:54Freed's got a little bit of a blister right now.

05:57I mean, I think Scoble's the favorite.

05:59I do.

06:00I think Freed's probably in second, but he's got a good chance, but not a, you know, a huge chance like Judge.

06:07I mean, I wouldn't say 100%, but it's certainly over 80%.

06:11All right.

06:12John Hammond, thanks for blessing the studio.

06:14All right.

06:14Good to see you.

06:15Good to see you.

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