This morning, I passed along a rumor that the NY Post reported today. According to the Post, the Mariners were scouting Yankee minor leaguers in anticipation of dealing LHP Cliff Lee to the Bronx.
I wrote this story reluctantly because the Yankees boast a full five-man rotation. They really don’t need another starter.
This afternoon, the Daily News published a more sensible report. The Daily News actually contacted the Yankees to see if the club had any interest in dealing for the Mariners ace.
It turns out, there is none.
“There is no urgency to do anything with the rotation,” a Yankees official told the Daily News. “That’s not an area that we’re focused on.
“Seattle may be doing its prep work by scouting a bunch of different teams,” the official said. “But it sounds like they’re doing more prep work than we are on this one.”
The Yankees will likely be interested in Lee at some point. But that won’t happen until he becomes a free agent this offseason.
Nothing about general manager Brian Cashman’s past dealings indicates he would make a move like this.
George King, the Post reporter who initially broke this story, has been around long enough to know this—or at least he should.
I’m still surprised that he ran with this story. He could have at least contacted a Yankee official to find out if there was any substance regarding a possible trade.
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