The New York Yankees acquired Aroldis Chapman from the Cincinnati Reds on Monday and assembled what looks to be the best bullpen in the MLB. While general manager Brian Cashman says the plan is to keep fellow relievers Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances, rumors suggest otherwise.
Trade rumors have surrounded Miller for much of the offseason as the Yankees are still searching for a young starter pitcher to add stability to their ailing rotation. It was said the Yankees were previously dangling Miller and asking for a No. 1 starter in return.
However, Cashman said he spoke to Miller regarding the deal that brought Chapman to the Bronx and assured him the team plans to keep the bullpen intact.
"I was making him aware that it will feed a lot of speculation that's been around," Cashman said of the trade on Tuesday, via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. "I told him our intent is to retain all three players. How it shakes out in the closer role, going forward, that's all for another day."
However, some around the MLB don't feel the same way. The addition of Chapman has undoubtedly created surplus of elite relievers in the Yankees' bullpen and that could mean the team is weighing any and all trade options.
"Some rival officials privately said after the Yankees' acquisition of Chapman that they expect the Yankees to now trade Miller, perhaps for the kind of rotation help the team needs," writes ESPN's Buster Olney.
That could be a scenario, but if that's the case, the Yankees will likely have to wait and see how the MLB handles Chapman in the wake of his domestic abuse allegations. If he's suspended for a long period of time, there's no chance they'd trade Miller right away. However, if he gets a short suspension or no suspension at all, then their thought process may change.
Then again, Joel Sherman of the New York Post said the Yanks could not get the young starting pitcher they were hoping to acquire, so adding Chapman was "a way to protect the fragile rotation by making the end game a powerhouse." It's not unreasonable to think the Yankees want to lock down innings 7-9 to avoid further woes with their pitching staff.
At this point nothing can be ruled out because the situation is far from being resolved. Cashman has gotten creative over the past few offseasons and it'd be foolish to think he's ruling out such decision making in the future.
