New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole is expected to miss the first twelve weeks of the 2024 season and there's a lot of talk about how the team will deal with his absence.
The Yankees had already been connected to several pitchers who could lead the rotation, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, having made an offer to free agent Blake Snell and restarting trade talks with the Chicago White Sox shortly before Dylan Ceases was traded to the San Diego Padres. Now that search could be getting more serious as Cole told reporters, including MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch, that it is “too soon to look at the calendar and circle a return date.”
Assessing the current trade market for options that “could replace” Cole, Dayn Perry suggested that the Yankees consider a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers for 27-year-old Freddy Peralta, who is entering the fourth year of a five-year, $15.5 million deal.
“Over the last three seasons, Peralta in 74 starts and a pair of relief appearances has authored an impressive ERA+ of 123 with a K/BB ratio of 3.58,” Perry noted. “It’s fair to consider him one of the more underrated starting pitchers around, and he’d very much be a boon to the Yankees’ hopes.”
Perry added that the Brewers could be sellers as they have already offloaded Corbin Burnes and Adrian Houser this offseason. Plus, they recently lost All-Star closer Devin Williams to a projected 12-week injury.
“Over in the NL Central, the reigning champion Brewers have been shipping off starting pitchers this winter,” as Perry put it.
Trading for Freddy Peralta Would Give the New York Yankees a Rotation Leader in Place of Gerrit Cole
Peralta is currently projected to lead the Brewers rotation, particularly as Brandon Woodruff recovers from a shoulder injury. In six big-league seasons, he has a 3.83 career ERA and 42 wins in 97 starts. As Perry noted, his strikeout-to-walk ratio is stellar, with a top-five K-BB% that puts him ahead of the likes of Zack Wheeler, Luis Castillo and even Cole.
In an All-Star 2021 season, Peralta logged 195 strikeouts across 144.1 innings with a 2.81 ERA. Most of his pitch velocities are up since then.
If the Yankees do seek a trade for him, the asking price could be higher than it was for Burnes. Though Burnes is a former Cy Young winner, Peralta will be under club control for longer.
“Peralta’s contract includes a pair of very affordable team options for 2025 and 2026 ($8 million apiece), which means the Brewers amy not be willing to part with him,” Perry reported.
Yankees’ number-two prospect Spencer Jones has been off limits in previous trade discussions this offseason, Jorge Castillo reported for ESPN.
The New York Yankees Have Announced Their Opening Day Replacement for Gerrit Cole
The Yankees may wait to see how things shake out in the start of the season before earnestly negotiating a trade for a candidate like Peralta. But without Cole, the team struggled to determine who could serve as the Opening Day starter. They ultimately settled on Nestor Cortes, who is looking to bounce back from an injury-plagued 4.97 earned run average during the 2023 season.
If Cortes can't step up in the first half of the 2024 season, the Yankees will really feel the lack of depth behind Cole. They might have to trade for help at that point.
