NEW YORK — The Yankees need a right-handed bat and a shortstop upgrade. CJ Abrams checks both boxes. The problem is everyone else can see that too, and the team that has him is not in a hurry to let him go.
Abrams has surfaced as one of the most discussed names ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline, with the Yankees among the clubs watching him closely. But a national ranking of trade candidates has put the odds of a deal at just 15 percent, a figure that underscores just how steep the climb would be for the Yankees.
The opportunity is real. So is the resistance.
What Abrams is doing this year
The case for Abrams starts with what he has produced for the Washington Nationals in 2026. The 24-year-old has been one of the best shortstops in the sport.
Abrams is slashing .287/.378/.526 with a .905 OPS and 14 home runs through the first half of the season. His OPS ranks first among all major league shortstops. This comes against a $4.5 million annual salary and team control with arbitration until the end of the 2028 season.
He is doing damage in every dimension, hitting for average, hitting for power, stealing bases, and driving in runs. Two years of team control remain after this season, making his profile even more compelling for any team that can land him.
ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan ranked Abrams fifth on their list of top trade candidates, noting his production as undeniable.
“He hits for average. He hits for power. He steals bases. He drives in runs,” the report said. “All of that plus two years of control and he plays up the middle?”
Where he fits for the Yankees
The Yankees have a clear opening for a player like Abrams. The left side of their infield has been a revolving door of questions.
With Aaron Judge sidelined by a rib injury and Giancarlo Stanton missing time with a calf issue, the Yankees have leaned heavily on depth and veteran savvy. Adding Abrams would give manager Aaron Boone a true middle-of-the-order shortstop, a switch-hitter with speed, power, and on-base ability.
His right-handed power against lefties would add lineup balance, and his speed would open up the basepaths in ways the Yankees have not had this season.
ESPN’s Buster Olney noted that Brian Cashman is expected to be an aggressive deadline operator, with the bullpen a top priority but a right-handed bat also on the wish list alongside that pitching need.
“Assuming that Aaron Judge is effective once he comes back from a stress fracture to his rib, there will be a lot to like about the Yankees,” Olney wrote. “But the bullpen will likely undergo a makeover at the trade deadline, with a clear need for a couple of power arms — as well as a right-handed hitter.”
Why the Nationals hold the cards
The obstacle for the Yankees is that Washington is not a willing seller. The Nationals have been one of baseball’s surprising stories this season, hovering around .500 and taking a clear step forward under first-year president of baseball operations Paul Toboni.
The Nationals went 35-34 entering mid-June and are playing meaningful baseball far earlier than they did in 2025. That competitiveness makes Toboni’s decision harder. Moving Abrams would essentially wave the white flag on a season in which the team has earned real credibility.
Toboni addressed the topic directly when speaking to CBS Sports, stopping well short of signaling any willingness to break up his young core.
“I think the whole league saw them as good players last year,” Toboni said. “I think that the league is looking at them as, ‘Hey, these are these players at the top of their craft at each of their respective positions, which makes me go back to the fact that we’re super fortunate to have them on our club.'”
The 15 percent problem and who else is competing
The ESPN report put the chances of any Abrams trade at 15 percent, the lowest figure among the top-five trade candidates. Three factors work against the Yankees.
First, Abrams is not a reliable defender. Evaluators rank him among the worst shortstops in the game by defensive metrics, which limits the number of teams that need him in that role. The Yankees could move him to another position, but that complicates the fit.
Second, Washington’s asking price would be severe. Toboni would demand a haul for a controllable, 24-year-old bat posting first-in-MLB shortstop OPS. Any deal would likely require a prospect package well beyond a single top prospect.
Third, the Yankees would not be bidding alone. The Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays are also identified as teams with interest in Abrams, per the ESPN report. An AL East rival landing Abrams would be its own kind of damage for New York.
The report also flagged Abrams’s track record of strong first halves followed by second-half fades after the All-Star break, a pattern evaluators watch closely. The Yankees would be betting on the stronger version.
The price the Yankees would have to pay
The question of what the Yankees could offer is a real one. Cashman has historically been cautious about dealing elite prospects, but a player of Abrams’s caliber would command that level of return.
Any realistic package would likely need to center on a top-tier prospect and include additional high-level pieces. The Yankees farm system has more depth than it did a few years ago, but emptying it for a rental-adjacent deal carries obvious risk.
An offseason trade, if Washington falls out of contention in the second half, could allow the Yankees to acquire Abrams at a more reasonable cost. For now, the Nationals hold a strong hand, and the Yankees, while firmly interested, will need the market to shift in their favor.
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