MLB Rumors: Yankees and Cardinals could match up in an offseason Dylan Carlson trade
Earlier this month, the Yankees waived Harrison Bader, which could have been step one toward an outfield revitalization in New York. Bader was underwhelming for the Yankees at the plate and their offense as a whole has been disappointing this season.
Pair this hole with their hole in left field and the Yankees have a desperate need for outfielders as we head closer to 2024. The obvious answers remain within the Yankees organization by the way of Jasson Dominguez and Everson Pereria.
But with the way that New York has developed and retained talent over the last few years, besides a few All-Stars, the Yankees could look towards a trade to fill this hole.
Enter the St Louis Cardinals and their outfielder Dylan Carlson. This matchup is almost a match made in heaven for an offseason trade, as mentioned by Brendan Kuty of The Athletic when discussing the future for Dominguez with New York and what it means for the outfield.
The Yankees showed serious interest in Carlson at the 2023 MLB trade deadline and the Cardinals are one of the biggest sellers in the big leagues right now. Carlson could join the Yankees in the outfield, giving them a young, team-controlled option for the next few years.
This trade deadline discussion could find its way to fruition during the 2023 offseason, as we head toward 2024.
MLB Rumors: Former top Brewers prospect Keston Hiura may not be back in majors in 2023 due to injury
A few seasons ago, Keston Hiura looked to be one of the most promising young prospects in the Milwaukee Brewers system. After being selected in the 1st round of the 2017 draft, Hiura smashed Single-A pitching.
He proceeded to fly up the Brewers farm system, landing in the big leagues 2019 as a 22-year-old rookie. His rookie year backed up the hype as he was able to slash .303/.368/.570 across 348 plate appearances.
But that production never remained after his rookie season. His play dipped so badly that he landed in Triple-A in 2023. Hiura has taken full advantage of this opportunity to fine-tune his swing and approach in Triple-A this season.
In over 80 games in Triple-A, Hiura is slashing .308/.395/.565 with 23 home runs and 12 doubles. But sadly, for the Brewers, Hiura may not have a chance to make it back to the big leagues this year after being derailed with an arm injury, as reported by MLB.com Brewers beat writer Adam McCalvy.
The former top prospect is still rather young, at just 27 years old, so his time in the major leagues may not be over. He has the time to improve and make the comeback to Milwaukee, but following that injury, it may not be during this season.
MLB Rumors: Braves emerge as potential sleeper to land Shohei Ohtani
Jim Bowden of The Athletic recently reported that the Atlanta Braves could end up as one of the surprising potential landing spots for the Japanese star, Shohei Ohtani this offseason. And he makes a great point.
The Braves have built their roster into one of the most talented rosters in recent memory and they've done so at an affordable price. They've locked their core players up for years to come under guaranteed contracts while avoiding arbitration for the most part.
This has cleared an incredible amount of cap space that most teams don't have, especially when they have a few $25+ million players on the payroll.
What better lineup for Ohtani to join than the historic lineup that is the Braves 2023 batting order? I can't think of a better spot for him, lineup-wise.
With their cap flexibility, this could become a real possibility as the offseason draws closer and closer. The addition of Ohtani would just make the rich even richer.
Now, let's preface: this is an unrealistic idea at the moment. The Braves have a good enough roster to win without paying nearly half a billion dollars for one player. But wouldn't it be fun to have Matt Olson, Ronald Acuna AND Shohei Ohtani in the same lineup?