Yankees Trade Lands $188 Million Former MVP Slugger

Getty Brian Cashamn sitting during a press conference

The New York Yankees‘ offseason could see them take a few risks. If Juan Soto departs, the Yankees will have to take more than a few. They have money to spend and prospects to trade, and while losing Soto would be the worst outcome, they could find help in other ways.

In a recent trade proposal from Peter Appel of Just Baseball, the Yankees would take a huge risk, trading for former MVP Christian Yelich. Yelich is an interesting name to follow this winter. He hasn’t been a hot name on the trade market, but if the Milwaukee Brewers are worried about his back injury and want to shed salary, they could move him.

“Yelich signed a 7-year, $188.5M extension with Milwaukee in 2020, so he will become an unrestricted free agent once he’s 38 years old in 2029. The Brewers will likely keep him because he’s fantastic, but the Brewers are always looking to move off big contracts…

“It’s difficult to say what the Brewers would want for him, but the Yankees have the system to make a move like this. Yelich is a fantastic bat when healthy, and in those 73 games he played last year, he stole 21 bases. The Yankees could acquire him without parting with Jasson Dominguez. If Adames leaves, they may want an infield prospect like a Roderick Arias, our sixth-ranked prospect in the Yankees system,” Appel wrote on November 26.

Yelich’s Contract Could Become an Issue

The Milwaukee Brewers haven’t exactly spent much throughout the team’s existence. It’s the harsh reality of being a smaller market team.

Yelich has been a staple in their lineup for much of the past decade after joining the team in 2018. Still, they traded Corbin Burnes last winter, and despite the situation being a bit different, it’s tough to count out the Brewers making a move to save money.

The New York Yankees could benefit from that, but they must also recognize why Yelich might ever be available. If it weren’t for his back injury and contract, the Brewers wouldn’t have a reason to move him. With his $188.5 million deal, it’s something to consider.

If his back injury continues to be a problem, Eric Treuden of FanSided believes it could be a major issue in the future.

“Yelich’s remaining contract is either going to be money well spent, or nothing more than a wasted roster spot and wasted money on the team’s payroll. He’s making a ton of money through the end of his deal ($22 million a year to be exact), so there’s some added pressure there for him to perform, or at the very least: be healthy…

“It’s important to be honest with ourselves and the expectations we hold over Yelich and the rest of his time on the Brewers. We’ve seen what he can do when he’s healthy, but the exact problem is that he can’t stay healthy. There’s virtually no guarantee at all that he’ll be able to continue his 2024 tear, or even come close to the MVP-type of production he showed way back when,” Treuden wrote on October 14.

Should the Yankees Trade for Yelich?

If the Milwaukee Brewers eventually want to move the left-handed hitting outfielder, the New York Yankees would be an ideal landing spot. He could succeed with the short porch in right field and be a hitter in the middle of their lineup.

However, the idea of the Brewers trading him seems like a long shot.

Another factor they’d have to consider is that Milwaukee likely wouldn’t eat any of his contract. Moving him would be for financial purposes, so the Yankees would have to pay the rest of the deal.

There’s a lot that would have to happen, but his back injury and contract leave a lot to be worried about.