Deivi Garcia just became a big-time trade chip if need be after the Gerrit Cole signing.
Signing Gerrit Cole is obviously huge news in Yankee-land but the acquisition has major ripple effects up and down the farm system. Here are the biggest takeaways.
1. First and foremost, signing Gerrit Cole to his landmark 9-year, $324 million deal should eliminate the “opener” spot in the rotation and make an already insanely deep bullpen that much deeper by shifting Chad Green and his flame-throwing cohorts back where they theoretically belong. The Cole signing moves everyone else back a spot in the starting rotation, moving Luis Severino to #2, James Paxton and Masahiro Tanaka to fill out the third and fourth spots, and leaving Domingo German and his 18 wins fighting it out with both JA Happ [12-8, 4.91 ERA] and Jordan Montgomery for the fifth starter’s spot, thus negating the need for the “opener.”
2. The elimination of the “opener” means there is one less bullpen spot available which makes for even shorter leashes for the likes of Jonathan Holder, Luis Cessa, Ben Heller, Stephen Tarpley, recent 40-man roster addition Brooks Kriske, Joe Harvey, and a host of others vying for the last remaining bullpen spots entering 2020. It also most likely cements the immediate role futures of both Chance Adams and Domingo Acevedo with the Yankees as neither appears to have any more starting chances in Pinstripes.
3. The acquisition of Cole buys time for the upper level trio of right-handed pitchers Jonathan Loaisiga, Deivi Garcia, and Nick Nelson, and even a bit more time for surging top pitching prospect Clarke Schmidt. Prior to Tuesday's signing these four pitchers were in the mix for potentially getting some big league starts for the Yankees in 2020 and that still may happen with a rash of injuries but as of now only Loaisiga appears to be granted those opportunities given the big league starting depth as it stands. Having Cole in the fold gives each one of them one more year of seasoning while providing some serious starting pitching depth should a rash of injuries befall the big league starting rotation.
4. While bringing Cole into the fold buys time for the upper level pitching prospects it does shorten their short-term starting leash too, at least for the Yankees. Guys like Jonathan Loaisiga and Nick Nelson in particular who have been groomed as starters may continue to be groomed as such going forward at the minor league level in 2020 but Cole's acquisition does increase the likelihood that the immediate impact of those hurlers may have come via the bullpen for the Yankees. It's a nice problem to have, however.
5. There is no way around it, signing Cole gives the Yankees instant trade depth. With Cole in the mix and headlining what is now a very, very deep starting rotation up and down the organization it does make many other high-end arms superfluous, including the aforementioned Loasiga, Deivi Garcia in particular, and even established big league starting pitchers like Domingo German and JA Happ. That trade coffer depth could allow the Yankees to theoretically get anything they want or need on the trade market. How many teams in baseball for example would like a cost-controlled German [and his 18 wins] added to their rotation?
6. Getting Cole gives the Yankees options with both Loaisiga and Luis Medina in particular. Both Loasiga and Medina, two 40-man roster players, possess a Cole-like ‘ace’ ceiling given their three-plus pitches and incredibly high swing and miss rates, and adding Cole and subsequently sliding everyone else back a spot gives the Yankees a bit more time to explore their options with their two highest ceiling pitching prospects. It can either afford them more starting time or give them the flexibility of gripping it and ripping it in a bullpen role.
7. Signing Cole should serve as warning to the mid-and-lower level arms that they’ve become a lot more expendable now! Albert Abreu, Glenn Otto, Miguel Yajure, Luis Gil, etc, etc, all have more time to develop but the flip side of that coin is they are not nearly as needed as much long-term as they were pre-Cole signing.