Harper trade speculation (breakout from off-season thread)

[Mathguy]

If the reports that the Yankees are getting Giancarlo Stanton from the Marlins are accurate, then the Pinstripes may have just removed themselves from the Bryce Harper auction after the 2018 season.

[UMDNats]

If the reports that the Yankees are getting Giancarlo Stanton from the Marlins are accurate, then the Pinstripes may have just removed themselves from the Bryce Harper auction after the 2018 season.

Cubs are biggest threat TBH.

[Slateman]

If the reports that the Yankees are getting Giancarlo Stanton from the Marlins are accurate, then the Pinstripes may have just removed themselves from the Bryce Harper auction after the 2018 season.

Hardly. The Yankees, even with Stanton, can get under the luxury tax threshold. Which means they'll be right back in the mix in 2019. Harper is athletic enough to play CF.

[Mattionals]

Hardly. The Yankees, even with Stanton, can get under the luxury tax threshold. Which means they'll be right back in the mix in 2019. Harper is athletic enough to play CF.

Yankees right now have Hicks, Frazier, Stanton, Judge, Gardner, and Ellsbury in the outfield/DH. If they buyout Gardner in 2019 for 2 Million, and somehow get rid of Ellsbury, that is a pretty good set of four to play the OF/DH. Bird, Didi, Gleybar Torres, and Sanchez is a solid IF leaving 3B open. They have Miguel Andujar for 3B, but they could just as easily trade him for pitching, something they need, and sign Machado instead.

I think the Yankees have a glut of OF currently on the roster that are very good, and even have Florial coming too. I think the Dodgers would play more on Bryce than NYY at this point.

[sph274]

I hope they Yankees sign him for 400 million and put him in CF. An injury waiting to happen. at 40 million a year, why not just sign Arrieta and/or Darvish this offseason? That team alone would be the AL WS favorite for the next few years.

[Slateman]

Yankees right now have Hicks, Frazier, Stanton, Judge, Gardner, and Ellsbury in the outfield/DH. If they buyout Gardner in 2019 for 2 Million, and somehow get rid of Ellsbury, that is a pretty good set of four to play the OF/DH. Bird, Didi, Gleybar Torres, and Sanchez is a solid IF leaving 3B open. They have Miguel Andujar for 3B, but they could just as easily trade him for pitching, something they need, and sign Machado instead.

I think the Yankees have a glut of OF currently on the roster that are very good, and even have Florial coming too. I think the Dodgers would play more on Bryce than NYY at this point.

Gardner can be released after next season. And no one mentioned is better than Harper.
The Yankees have Headley for 2018, and can then sign Machado. Yes, they have the money to do this. And trade for at least one top of the rotation starter.

[Mattionals]

Gardner can be released after next season. And no one mentioned is better than Harper.
The Yankees have Headley for 2018, and can then sign Machado. Yes, they have the money to do this. And trade for at least one top of the rotation starter.

Judge hits ARB in 2020, and with runner up to MVP u see his belt, he is going to be close to 10 Million if not over. Sanchez is also ARB eligible then. I get that Harper is probably better than all or at least just as good as Judge and Stanton, but I still see the Yankees, who don't spend Willy Billy like they used to, buying ANOTHER outfielder AND getting Machado. That is a ton of money to wrap up in a team that with many good players, will get very expensive very fast. You also arent getting an ace caliber pitcher for cheap dollars anymore.

[Slateman]

Judge hits ARB in 2020, and with runner up to MVP u see his belt, he is going to be close to 10 Million if not over. Sanchez is also ARB eligible then. I get that Harper is probably better than all or at least just as good as Judge and Stanton, but I still see the Yankees, who don't spend Willy Billy like they used to, buying ANOTHER outfielder AND getting Machado. That is a ton of money to wrap up in a team that with many good players, will get very expensive very fast. You also aren't accounting for the pitching that they need. Tanaka is still iffy, Severino hits ARB in 2019, Gray could be great, and they have a few good pitching prospects but we all know how that goes. That team lacks a true Ace.

They're not getting a true ace in free agency. Strasburg is locked up, Harvey is a train wreck, and Fernandez killed himself. They're going to have to trade if they want one. All the more reason to spend on MVP candidates and trade your younger talent.

[hotshot]

Imagine how the Orioles must feel. The AL East is locked up for the foreseeable future. Couldn't happen to a more deserving set of thieves (talking about MASN). Karma is great! O's may be 20 (or more) back by the break.

[Mattionals]

Imagine how the Orioles must feel. The AL East is locked up for the foreseeable future. Couldn't happen to a more deserving set of thieves (talking about MASN). Karma is great! O's may be 20 back by the break.

I don't know. Boston is a good team as well. But the other three should completely sell off all assets now.

[UMDNats]

Gardner can be released after next season. And no one mentioned is better than Harper.
The Yankees have Headley for 2018, and can then sign Machado. Yes, they have the money to do this. And trade for at least one top of the rotation starter.

The Yankees have money for Harper after 2018, but I don't see that happening now. It just isn't...cost-effective or smart. They have a ton of OF prospects. Gardner will probably retire after 2019, especially if the Yankees win a World Series. They're going to try to salary dump Ellsbury. Judge-Gardner/Hicks-Stanton with the outlier guy being the DH. Easy.

Adding Harper over someone like Machado is silly. A good outfielder is much easier to find than a good 3B or SP or something.

This trade worked out great for us. Get Stanton out of the NL East. To the team most likely to sign Harper.

Now it's pretty much us, LA and the Cubs as the only realistic options. He ain't signing with some turd franchise. He wants spotlight. The Yankees were the perfect place for him regardless of his childhood fandom. LA and the Cubs scare me (especially since he's close with Bryant), but now I'm way more optimistic. He is a guy who definitely thinks about his "legacy." Does going to the Dodgers or Cubs as a mercenary move the needle at all in his "story"? No. Cubs have already broken the curse and Dodgers, well, he'd be sharing the spotlight with a ton of people. At the Yankees he could have been the next retired number in Monument Park.

I think, honestly, if we offer him what he's looking for, he signs. He can be the next Jeter/Ripken/etc. and be the best player in DC baseball history. I don't see the Yankees signing him - just doesn't make sense. In the last 24 hours, I think our chances have gone from "slim" to "decent," which is as optimistic as I've been in a while.

[UMDNats]

I don't know how the Orioles enter 2018 with Machado on the roster. They're throwing away their future if they do.

[imref]

I don't know how the Orioles enter 2018 with Machado on the roster. They're throwing away their future if they do.

it's the orioles, they'll have a ridiculous asking price for him.

[imref]

Mlbtr:

Harper is among the losers in this trade, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic opines (subscription required and recommended). Unsurprisingly, Harper’s agent, the always colorful Scott Boras, disagrees. “A Bronx opera . . . The Three Tenors . . . Hal’s genius, vision,” Boras told Rosenthal via email, referencing Harper, Stanton, Aaron Judge and Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner. Boras added that the Harper-Stanton-Judge trio would be “a galaxy of international popularity” on the same team. While Boras clearly isn’t ruling out a Yankees-Harper union, Rosenthal sees Manny Machado as a more likely target for the club in free agency next year.

[Slateman]

Rosenthal is an idiot. The Yankees can have both. They also have the depth to trade for the starters they want.

[rileyn]

I don't think Harper wants to be a part of a trio of stars.  He wants the spotlight as THE star.  How will it look if he finishes with fewer bombs than his fellow outfielders?  He is also not a CF for a full season.  My money is now on Chicago or LAD, with Philly also a possibility.  Angels and Texas are darkhorses.

[hotshot]

I don't know. Boston is a good team as well. But the other three should completely sell off all assets now.

You're right, Boston is a good team. Unfortunately, "good" isn't gonna cut it. The Red Sox already were way back in the NYY's rear view mirror when it came to power last season. Now, with Stanton, forget it.

[imref]

I don't think Harper wants to be a part of a trio of stars.  He wants the spotlight as THE star.  How will it look if he finishes with fewer bombs than his fellow outfielders?  He is also not a CF for a full season.  My money is now on Chicago or LAD, with Philly also a possibility.  Angels and Texas are darkhorses.

If Harper just wants to be the star he’ll stay here. I think he wants a ring more than anything else.

[Natsinpwc]

If Harper just wants to be the star he’ll stay here. I think he wants a ring more than anything else.

Agree. I think if the money is relatively equal he will choose where he has the best chance to win.

[Natsinpwc]

You're right, Boston is a good team. Unfortunately, "good" isn't gonna cut it. The Red Sox already were way back in the NYY's rear view mirror when it came to power last season. Now, with Stanton, forget it.

They don't play the games on paper. Things happen. I look for Judge to take a big step back this year. Of course Stanton will help with making up for that. Heaven help him if he starts slow.

[bluestreak]

Rosenthal is an idiot. The Yankees can have both. They also have the depth to trade for the starters they want.

So now Slate knows more about the thinking of MLB front offices than Ken Rosenthal... 🙄

[rileyn]

Agree. I think if the money is relatively equal he will choose where he has the best chance to win.

Hence, Chicago or LA.

[Slateman]

So now Slate knows more about the thinking of MLB front offices than Ken Rosenthal... 🙄

You don't have to be a genius to look at the Yankees payroll and realize that money isn't an object to them. It's pretty freaking simple.

[UMDNats]

You don't have to be a genius to look at the Yankees payroll and realize that money isn't an object to them. It's pretty freaking simple.

Money is an object under Hal, though. They can pick up Stanton because they have a ton of money coming off the books and a lot of cheaper players. There is a limit.

[Slateman]

Money is an object under Hal, though. They can pick up Stanton because they have a ton of money coming off the books and a lot of cheaper players. There is a limit.

They're going to have even more money coming off after 2018. Plus, they will likely be under the luxury tax threshold.

Again, if the Yankees want, they can have Machado and Harper, no problem. This idea that somehow trading peanuts for Stanton takes them out of the running for Harper is just naiveté by Nationals fans who are deluding themselves into thinking that they have a shot at signing Harper long term.