The New York Yankees are expected to pursue some pitching help this offseason, and the rotation will be a focus.
The Yankees will begin the 2026 MLB season with Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon injured, so New York will likely look to add a starter or two.
MLB insider Jim Bowden of The Athletic proposed a blockbuster deal that would see the Yankees acquire Freddy Peralta from the Milwaukee Brewers.
Yankees acquire:
Brewers acquire:
The three-player deal would be a blockbuster and one that makes sense for both teams. The Yankees upgrade their rotation while the Brewers get some cost-controllable players.
New York would acquire Peralta, who had his club option picked up for $8 million, and will be a free agent at the end of the year, which is why his name has come up in trade rumors. Peralta is a solid No. 3 starter who would bolster the Yankees’ rotation. He went 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA in 33 starts last season. He’s a two-time All-Star.
In return, the Yankees would give up Warren, who’s under team control through the 2030 season. Warren would be in the Brewers’ rotation as a No. 4 or No. 5 and add some much-needed pitching depth. He went 9-8 with a 4.44 ERA in 33 starts last season.
The Yankees would also give up Caballero, who’s a nice utility player. Caballero is just entering arbitration, so he’s under team control through 2029. He hit .236 with 5 home runs and 36 RBIs last season.
Insider Explains Yankees-Brewers Swap
The proposed deal would be a blockbuster and one that makes a lot of sense for both teams.
New York gets some much-needed pitching help, while the Brewers get two cost-controllable players.
“The Yankees could dangle right-handed starting pitcher Will Warren and shortstop Jose Caballero for Peralta, giving the Brewers two players to slot onto their major-league roster immediately,” Bowden wrote.
The hardest part of the deal for the Yankees would be moving on from Caballero, but Bowden believes it’s necessary to land Peralta.
“It may be hard for the Yankees to move Caballero if they anticipate needing him to fill in at shortstop at the start of the 2026 season as Anthony Volpe recovers from shoulder surgery. That said, if they can figure out another solution at short, Caballero would potentially be an attractive trade chip to the Brewers,” Bowden wrote.
“Caballero could share shortstop with Ortiz and fill in practically anywhere else on the field as needed. The Brewers always embrace speed and Caballero, 29, has plenty of that. He has swiped more than 40 bases in each of the past two seasons.”
New York Focused on Pitching
Entering the offseason, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman made it clear that pitching is a priority.
Cashman said the goal is to add more pitching, whether that’s in the rotation or bullpen.
“It’s always pitching first and foremost,” Cashman said on November 20, via social media clip. “The starting rotation was a plus for us all year, (it) didn’t work out for us in the postseason. The bullpen we fortified, but I think it needs to be more fortified.”
Cashman also hinted at adding a starter due to the injuries to Cole and Rodon.
“Our rotation, on paper, is going to be really good when healthy,” Cashman concluded. “But, we start the season with Rodon and Cole recovering from their surgeries. So they won’t start until probably May. Because of that, there is some vulnerability on the front end of the season. So you want to fortify the rotation a little bit.”
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