The New York Yankees need catching help after Francisco Cervelli was placed on the 60-day disabled list after suffering a broken hand. Austin Romine was called up and has made one start and obviously does not have confidence of manager Joe Girardi. Of course, all that could change in Romine’s next start but right now it looks like the Yankees are reluctant to give Romine significant playing time and are leaning on veteran Chris Stewart to handle the duties behind the plate. With such an unsettled situation behind the plate, the Yankees could be looking at adding a catcher fairly soon.
The trade market is still developing as teams are waiting to see what will happen as we get closer to the July 31st trade deadline. However, there could be a couple of catchers available right now if the Yankees are willing to meet the price.
The San Diego Padres will be getting Yasmani Grandal back soon from his 50-game suspension for violating MLB’s performance enhancing drug rules. Nick Hundley could be made available as the Padres try to clear some money and roster space.
Hundley, 29, had a bad year last year hitting just .157/.219/.245 in 58 games. However, he is off to a very nice start to the 2013 campaign hitting .297/.323/.495 in 24 games and equaling last year’s home run output already with three homers.
Hundley is signed through the 2015 season so he would give the Yankees a viable starting catcher until J.R. Murphy or Gary Sanchez is ready to handle the catching duties in the Bronx. Of course, getting Hundley is easier said than done. Padres GM Josh Byrnes isn’t going to let Hundley go for nothing and will most likely ask for a fairly large return given the dearth of solid catching on the market at the moment.
If the asking price were to be something that the Yankees can afford they would be wise to make this move. Hundley would give the Yankees an affordable option at catcher while adding much needed depth at a thin position until the Yankees’ prospects are ready to take over. Right now, the cost might be prohibitive but something could be worked out as we get closer to the deadline.
