Yankees' Aaron Judge has Torn Ligament in Toe, No Timetable for Return

Things have not been for the New York Yankees at the major league level, and it will only get tougher now. 

Prior to the Yankees 1-0 victory over the Texas Rangers on Saturday,  word came down that Aaron Judge is suffering from a torn ligament in the right big toe he injured while crashing through the right field fence at Dodgers Stadium earlier this month. 

Aaron Boone gave no time table for Judge's return, but, added he expects Judge to return this season. 

The sobering news is not a good one for the Yankees, who are clinging to the last wild card slot as the LA Angels and Boston Red Sox are circling. The Yankees are already 10.5 games out of first place in the AL East. 

With Judge out seemingly for an undisclosed amount of time, that could -- not saying it will -- but could be for the season, it puts everything on the table for the Yankees. 

Very rarely over the past 25 years of Yankees postseason excellence have they been sellers at the deadline. Since the wild card was first introduced in 1995, and since the Yankees have been a perenial playoff team since that '95 season, only a couple of times where they sellers. 

 

The last time was 2016 when they dealt Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs to get Gleyber Torres, Billy McKinny and Adam Warren in return. 

2016 was the start of the Baby Bombers, which featured the likes of Judge, Torres and Gary Sanchez. In 2017, they exploded onto the scene beginning this current run the Yanks have been on. 

Now, they could be in a position to re-tool again. 

Torres could be a trade chip. As could Josh Donaldson and D.J. LeMahieu. 

Giancarlo Stanton would be a very expensive piece to move, if the Yankees really go hell or high water on selling. 

But the Yankees could do it, if they want to because they have the minor leaguers to build this thing back up again. 

When the Yankees promoted Anthony Volpe at the start of the season it was just the beginning. 

There is a plethora of talent coming up through the system. 

Jasson Dominguez, Austin Wells, Trey Sweeney, Clayton Beeter are just a handful of names that are dominating right now at Double-A Somerset. The Patriots just clinched the first half title on Friday, and are in position to repeat as Double-A Eastern League champions come the fall. 

 

The Yankees have a future. So if Aaron Judge's big toe spells the end of postseason dreams in 2023 for the Big League squad, they can regroup very easily.

Are the Mets going to be Sellers at the Deadline?

 It sure looks like the Mets might be taking their first steps to become sellers at the deadline this year. 

Mid-game against the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday the Mets announced that they traded Eduardo Escobar to the Los Angeles Angels for a pair of top-20 prospects in the Angels farm system: Coleman Crow and Landon Marceu.

Crow, while he has been on the IL since April, projects as the better of the two prospects. He has pitched to a 1.88 ERA this season so far. 

But the greater question is this: Are the Mets sellers? 

 John Harper of SNY says that the deal really shouldn't be looked in that light. And one could argue he is correct. 

The Mets really had no place for Escobar to get regular playing time and at bats. He lost the starting third base job to Brett Baty; and the Mets already have Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeil entrenced at second an short, respectively.

It's more beneficial for Escobar -- the player -- to play elsewhere. 

That said, the Mets need to retool. They are 14.5 games out of first place and seven out of the wild card prior to their victory over Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon. 

If the Mets do not turn things around, and if the way they have played this month is any indication, then owner Steve Cohen, GM Billy Eppler and Manager Buck Showalter are going to have to face facts and sell at the deadline. 

This does not necessarily mean trading Max Scherzer (who has a third year  player option next year) and Justin Verlander (who has a no trade clause), because both of them may be hard to move, but it could mean curtains for guys like Starling Marte, Mark Canha, Daniel Voglebach, and Adam Ottovino for example. 

If the Mets can get a decent return for those aging veteran players who can help a contender right away, then, yes, the Mets should go and do it.

Steve Cohen Won't "Panic," But Mets Could Pursue David Stearns

 New York Mets owner Steve Cohen spoke candidly to Joel Sherman of the New York Post about the Mets recent struggles; the Amazin's have lost eight of nine now, and he was adamant that he will not blow this team up. 

Cohen stressed that he believes in the team, and thinks that a turnaround is possible. 

If you haven't read the story, read it here! 

Meanwhile, Bob Nightengale of USA Today is reporting that the Mets are poised to hire former Milwaukee Brewers General Manager David Stearns to take over as the team's President of Baseball Operations. 

The Mets have been flirting with Stearns for years since Cohen took over the team, and with Stearns now a former employee of the Milwuakee Brewers it makes too much sense of the Mets not to pursue him.

 

The catch of course is that Stearns cannot sign with the Mets until the season is over due to the fact he's still under contract with the Brewers. 

Should Stearns come to the Mets, it will be fascinating to see what happens to GM Billy Eppler and Manager Buck Showalter, both of whom have drawn criticism from Mets fans all season.

Mets Lose Pete Alonso for a Month with Bone Bruise

 Pete Alonso will be out for the next month with a bone bruise and sprain to his wrist, the Mets announced Friday evening before the team opens a series in Pittsburgh. 

 

Alonso sustained the injury during an at bat against Atlanta's Charlie Morton on Wednesday.

The Mets were swept by the Braves this week, stand at 30-33 on the year. 

 

The Amazin's did manage to score 10 runs in a heart breaking 13-10 loss, but losing Alonso for an extended period of time does nothing to help this team moving forward. The Mets need his power back in the middle of this lineup. 

Jacob deGrom Out Until 2025 With Second Tommy John Surgery

 And this is why the Mets didn't commit long term to Jacob deGrom. 

It's sad, cold, but true. deGrom, the former Mets ace, who won two Cy Young Awards in 2018 and 2019, and would have been on pace to win a third in 2021 were it not for elbow inflammation that ended his season that year, is going to miss the rest of this season, and most of next year with the Texas Rangers to undergo Tommy John Surgery.

The announcement spread like wildfire on Twitter. 

deGrom signed a five-year $185 million deal with the Rangers in the off-season, a deal that now looks like a poison pill because the Rangers did not take any insurance on the contract, and own the oft-injured pitcher $155 million over the remaining four years of the deal. 

 

According to CBS there is a Tommy John Clause that "now gives Texas a sixth year club option (in 2028) worth between $20 million and $37 million, depending on awards voting and innings totals."

In all brutal honesty, the Mets dodged a bullet. 

They offered deGrom less money and a shorter deal because they knew about the injury risks with the Cy Young Award winner. 

Two years ago the inflammation in deGrom's right elbow knocked him out for the remainder of the 2021 season. When deGrom toed the rubber again, it was not until August of last season more than a year removed from the inflammation starting. 

The Mets didn't want to take that risk, and were willing to let deGrom walk. Instead the Mets went in another direction signing Justin Verlander and Kodai Senga. As inconsistent as both pitchers have been, the Mets have to be glad they didn't lose big the way Texas has.