Yankees’ roster cracks make trade deadline needs impossible to ignore

NEW YORK — The Yankees are sitting comfortably in playoff position, and riding one of the best rotations in baseball. But the conversation around the team keep circling back to what they are missing?

Because the holes are real, and the clock is ticking.

With just over two months until the Aug. 3 trade deadline, the picture of what the Yankees need is coming into focus. According to three talent evaluators surveyed by The Athletic, two areas stand out above the rest. The bullpen and the catching position are where the Yankees figure to spend their energy and their prospect capital.

New York currently sits second to the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East. The Yankees have built a strong cushion in the Wild Card race and remain the likely division favorites. That makes them clear buyers. The only question is where they aim first.

Bullpen tops the list of Yankees concerns

When one evaluator was asked to name the team’s weak points, the answer was blunt. Lots of bullpen help. That single phrase captures the biggest worry hanging over an otherwise strong Yankees roster.

The Yankees have a handful of relievers they trust. David Bednar holds the closer role. Lefties Tim Hill and Brent Headrick are fixtures, and righty Fernando Cruz has been excellent. Beyond that group, the certainty fades quickly for the Yankees.

Bednar himself has been shaky in the ninth inning. He is a respectable 12-for-14 in save chances but carries a 4.70 ERA across 23 innings. The underlying numbers tell a kinder story. His strikeout, chase, and ground-ball rates are all strong, and a sky-high .369 batting average on balls in play suggests bad luck that should correct itself.

The Yankees front office has seen this movie before. A year ago, Devin Williams posted strong peripheral numbers that never translated to results, and the team acquired Bednar to bump him to a setup role. A similar path could unfold this summer if Bednar does not stabilize.

Camilo Doval has been a bigger disappointment. The righty owns a 5.40 ERA across 23 appearances, his strikeout rate has cratered, and he is now pitching in low-leverage spots. There is also a roster wrinkle. Doval is roughly a month from reaching five years of service time, the point at which he can refuse any minor league assignment. If the Yankees want to keep him optionable at the deadline, they would need to send him down before early July.

Internal arms the Yankees are weighing

The Yankees do not have to solve everything through trades. Several internal arms could push for roles in the second half.

Righty Angel Chivilli, an offseason addition, made just two appearances before landing on the injured list with shoulder inflammation in late April. His fastball averaged 97.1 mph last season, with a slider and changeup that both missed bats at high rates. Yovanny Cruz touched 101 mph in a brief big-league look, though walks remain a problem. Bradley Hanner has dominated at Triple-A with a 1.54 ERA, and prospect Eric Reyzelman fanned 32 hitters in 17 1/3 innings at Double-A before a promotion.

The most intriguing internal option for the Yankees is Carlos Lagrange. The 23-year-old righty sat in the triple digits during spring training and averages 99.1 mph on his four-seam fastball at Triple-A. He is striking out nearly 30 percent of hitters. The catch is his control, as he has walked more than 12 percent of opponents and averages just over four innings per start.

General manager Brian Cashman addressed the Lagrange question directly when speaking with Joel Sherman of the New York Post. He framed a bullpen move as a realistic way to get the flamethrower to the majors this year.

“There have been ongoing discussions about moving Lagrange to the bullpen at some point this season,” Cashman said, per Sherman.

A move to relief would not necessarily end Lagrange’s future as a starter. With no opening in a rotation featuring Gerrit Cole, Cam Schlittler, Will Warren, Carlos Rodon, and Ryan Weathers, plus Max Fried expected back before the deadline, the bullpen is the clearest path to the big leagues for him now.

Catcher emerges as the second Yankees priority

All three evaluators surveyed believe the Yankees will hunt for a right-handed hitting catcher to pair with starter Austin Wells. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported the same target, that the Yankees will evaluate trade options behind the plate.

The reason behind the Yankees catching search is plain in the numbers. Wells has been strong defensively but dreadful at the plate, hitting .181 with a .579 OPS in 127 at-bats. He and backup J.C. Escarra have combined for a .185/.280/.263 line that ranks near the bottom of the majors. Both hit left-handed, and against lefty pitching the duo has posted a 64 wRC+ that ranks 25th in baseball.

Ben Rice once shared catching duties but has not caught all season. He is too valuable at first base and designated hitter to move back. The Yankees like the defense of Triple-A options Ali Sanchez and Payton Henry, but neither has hit enough to force the issue.

The catching market the Yankees face may be thin. Minnesota’s Ryan Jeffers, the top impending free-agent catcher, recently suffered a hamate fracture that required surgery and could sideline him until near the deadline. That leaves righty-hitting backup types like Pedro Pages, Christian Vazquez, Jake Rogers, and former Yankee Kyle Higashioka as more realistic targets. Adding a catcher midseason is tricky, since the new arrival must learn an entire pitching staff on the fly.

Other Yankees needs bubbling under the surface

The rotation is not a concern. Its 3.04 ERA ranked second in the majors even before Cole returned with 6 2/3 scoreless innings and 10 strikeouts in a 7-0 win over the Royals on Wednesday.

Still, the Yankees could use another right-handed bat. One could platoon with outfielder Trent Grisham, or fill a spot on the left side of the infield. The team likely misses Randal Grichuk, who has caught fire with the Chicago White Sox since being designated for assignment in late April.

Shortstop remains a position to watch. Sherman reported that the Yankees discussed Corey Seager with the Texas Rangers at last year’s deadline. A similar pursuit could turn Jose Caballero and Anthony Volpe into utility pieces. Top prospect George Lombard Jr. was promoted to Triple-A in late April but has hit just .198 through 23 games, and the Yankees should not rush the nearly-21-year-old.

One name keeps surfacing on the relief market. Miami’s Lake Bachar has fanned 28 percent of opponents with a 3.04 ERA, and he is under club control for five seasons. Brendan Kuty of The Athletic floated him as an under-the-radar arm who could generate deadline buzz, though nothing suggests the Yankees have zeroed in on him specifically.

The Yankees will enter deadline season as aggressive buyers, just as they were last July when they landed Bednar, Doval, and Jake Bird. None of those arms has been as reliable as hoped, which is exactly why the bullpen sits atop the list again. Two months remain. The needs are only getting louder.

What do you think? Will Cashman make a move?