In the run-up to the 2016 Major League Baseball non-waiver trade deadline the
New York Yankees dealt away a pair of premier relief pitchers to help replenish their minor league system.
New York then kept wheeling and dealing. They sent away veterans
Carlos Beltran and
Ivan Nova to the Texas Rangers and Pittsburgh Pirates in August. Toward the end of September, lefty reliever
Phil Coke was dealt away to the Pirates.
A PAIR OF ICONS RETIRE
On August 7, former All-Star third baseman
Alex Rodriguez announced that he was retiring, and played his final game less than a week later.
Also retiring was first baseman
Mark Teixeira. ‘Tex’ walked away at age 36 after spending the last eight years of his 14-year career in the Bronx.
The Yankees would finish in fourth place in the AL East Division, nine games behind their arch-rivals, the Boston Red Sox. They were also five games behind the division rival Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles for an AL Wild Card berth.
The Yanks are trying to get younger while still contending, always a tough task. But they are doing the right thing, and still have a handful of players who the club would be smart to try to trade while they still have real value.