The MLB trade deadline is one day away, and the Yankees have made Nestor Cortes available, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post.
Per The Post, it’s unclear what kind of return the Yanks would be targeting for Cortes.
Meanwhile, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports that the Yankees and Detroit Tigers are in “extensive” trade talks revolving around Jack Flaherty.
On its face, trading Cortes would seem odd. But it would make much more sense if done in tandem with a deal for another starter, such as Flaherty.
In this scenario, Luis Gil could be moved to the bullpen at some point, with Clarke Schmidt expected back at some point before the end of the season.
There are two reasons why dealing Cortes could make sense.
The first is that it is a strong sellers market, due in large part to the fact that only a handful of teams are truly out of playoff contention.
That means the Yanks could possibly get a haul for Cortes, who has another year of team control remaining beyond 2024.
There’s also the scenario reported above, where the Yankees trade Cortes in order to add offense, then turn around and trade for another starting pitcher, such as Flaherty, to take his spot.
In any event, if New York does indeed trade Cortes, it will be reminiscent of the Jordan Montgomery for Harrison Bader trade that the Yankees swung at the 2022 deadline.