Reds: 1 Yankees player to target at the MLB trade deadline, 2 they should avoid

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It appears as though the New York Yankees may be sellers at the MLB trade deadline. While Aaron Judge would be outside the Cincinnati Reds' price range and won't even be made available in a trade, there are other Yankees players who could.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required), the Yankees may be attempting get under the highest luxury-tax threshold ahead of the MLB trade deadline.

That means New York may be looking to shed some of those pesky salaries that will be coming off the books anyway heading into 2024. So while the Yankees won't be sellers per se, they could looking to reduce their payroll. Could the Cincinnati Reds take advantage of this?

The Reds should target Yankees reliever Wandy Peralta.

There was chatter a few weeks ago about bringing former Cincinnati Reds reliever Aroldis Chapman back to the Queen City. Instead, Chapman is now pitching down in Arlington for the Texas Rangers. But perhaps the Reds could reunite with another former reliever.

Wandy Peralta is in the final year of his deal with the New York Yankees, and it just so happens that the Reds are in the market for a left-handed reliever. Peralta is 2-1 on the season with a 2.45 and has converted four of five saves opportunities.

Peralta is not going to blow you away with his strikeout numbers, as the southpaw has just 30 punch outs in nearly 37 innings of work. However, according to FanGraphs, Peralta owns a ground bal-rate above 60-percent. That is the perfect type of pitcher to be on the mound late in games at Great American Ball Park.

Wandy Peralta is a free agent at the end of the season. A left-handed reliever who keeps the ball on the ground and delivers his heater at 96 mph will be in rather high demand at the trade deadline. Peralta has struggled with walks this season (13.5-percent), but the Cincinnati Reds desperately need another lefty.

The Reds should avoid Yankees outfielder Harrison Bader.

Harrison Bader is a free agent to-be and could be on the New York Yankees shortlist of players they'd like to trade at the deadline. The Gold Glove-caliber defense that Bader plays would be a nice addition to the Cincinnati Reds outfield, but there's very little room for Cincinnati to add a position player at this year's trade deadline.

Bader, a former St. Louis Cardinal, was traded to the Yankees last season. Always more glove than bat, Bader has an OPS below .700 this season. While his speed and defense are Bader's calling cards, those two tools won't be enough to help him break into the lineup.

Harrison Bader is a right-handed hitter, which would be a welcome addition to the Reds left-handed hitting dominated outfield of TJ Friedl, Jake Fraley, and Will Benson. But Spencer Steer has been receiving reps in left field of late, and the Reds have the very versatile Nick Senzel as well. Senzel has played all three outfield spots this season.

The Reds also have right-handed hitting options like TJ Hopkins and Stuart Fairchild occupying a spot on the 40-man roster. Both Hopkins and Fairchild are down at Triple-A, but could be recalled if necessary.

With Christian Encarnacion-Strand now in the big leagues, the Cincinnati Reds starting lineup has 10, and sometimes 11, players competing for nine spots. There's no need to add a redundant piece like Harrison Bader to the mix.

The Reds should avoid Yankees starter Luis Serverino.

There has been a lot of talk about the Cincinnati Reds adding a starter at the MLB trade deadline. And it's certainly warranted after seeing the rotation's lack of production without Nick Lodolo and Hunter Greene present. Both starters are expected to return sometime in August.

But Luis Severino is not the answer. In fact, Cincinnati needs to stay as far away from the New York Yankees right-hander as possible. Severino is in the final year of his contract and his production has taken a tremendous downturn this season.

Severino is 1-4 in 10 starts and owns an unfortunate 6.66 ERA and an equally unimpressive 6.33 FIP according to FanGraphs. Worst of all is Severino's career-worst 2.22 HR/9. Severino's strikeout-rate (17.2-percent) is also at an all-time low.

This may hurt the feelings of the New York Yankees faithful, but Luke Weaver is performing better than Luis Severino this season. Don't believe me? According to FanGraphs, Weaver has a higher strikeout-rate (18.4-percent), a lower FIP (5.89), and a much lower walk-rate (6.9-percent).

So while Reds Country may want to see Nick Krall and Cincinnati's front office make some deals at this year's trade deadline, there's no need to help the Yankees get below the top-tier of the luxury tax threshold. Now, if such a deal brings Wandy Peralta to Cincinnati without sacrificing too much, then perhaps Krall and Brian Cashman should talk.

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