One Trade That Could Quietly Change the Yankees Playoff Outlook

The New York Yankees need more right-handed bats. It's something they have been vocal about since the winter.

For anybody who has been watching them since Aaron Judge went down, one thing is clear about that lineup, and it's that maybe they shouldn't be so picky about which side of the plate a player swings. They should be happy with any bat at this point.

One of the teams that could be sellers this season is the St. Louis Cardinals. If they're dangling reliever Riley O'Brien, catcher Iván Herrera and also the southpaw slugger who has always been one of the better defensive outfielders in Laars Nootbar, they should do it.

The Yankees have shown interest in Cardinals’ catcher Ivan Herrera per Jorge Castillo of ESPN. pic.twitter.com/5aAropxa5o
— Fireside Yankees (@FiresideYankees) July 29, 2026

The pros and cons of Laars Nootbar

Trading for O'Brien is an easy one to make because flame-throwing closers are a hot commodity on this market, but you could see the Yankees not loving the idea of trading for Nootbar simply because they have got it in their heads that they need a righty.

Understandably, anybody seeing Nootbar's numbers could feel like the Yankees can do better. Since 2025, he is hitting .235/.330/.362 with a 97 wRC+.

The Yankees and any potential detractors need to ask themselves two questions when it comes to Nootbar. The first is whether he'll be able to catch a fly ball. The answer is a resounding yes.

Another question is who they would rather have up at the plate if there's a runner on third base with less than two outs. Nootbar or the right Max Schuemann? The answer there should be Nootbar, as well.

This isn't a knock on Schuemann. He's an okay enough bench piece, and the fact that they're at the point of starting him isn't his fault, but this team's depth is at a fragile place where they're one outfield injury away from starting Amed Rosario every day. Imagine a world with an outfield that has Schuemann, Rosario, and Jasson Domínguez.

An easy pop up falls between Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Max Schuemann to gift Max Muncy a double pic.twitter.com/4yDvNDYk8M
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) July 19, 2026

For any team trading for Nootbar, they would hope that his injuries are behind him. He has been on and off the IL for the last two years for uncommon injuries like a left costochondral sprain, which is inflammation of the cartilage connecting the rib to the breastbone, and also a Bilateral Haglund's Deformity excision. That is a procedure to remove bony bumps from his heel.

A team would also be banking on the fact that, with those injuries behind him, Nootbar positively regresses to the mean offensively. His peripheral numbers show that he's making hard contact.

This season, Nootbar has a 92.3 MPH average exit velocity, a 50.9% hard-hit rate, and an excellent 32.7% squared-up rate. Another thing about Nootbar is that he has a great eye.

While he has a below-average 22.4% strikeout rate, that could go down as the season progresses since he has a 19.2% whiff rate and only chases at 18.2% of pitches outside the zone.

Nootbar also has a stellar 14.1% walk rate. On top of drawing walks, Nootbar sees 4.1 pitches per plate appearance. The Yankees absolutely need bats that can make a pitcher feel uncomfortable.

The only deadline philosophy: Add good players no matter which side of the plate they stand on

At this point in the game, saying that the Yankees need to add good players is a simplistic way of looking at things, but look how things turned out for those 2021 Braves. They brought in a slew of average to slightly-above-average players to pepper their roster with, without a single blockbuster deal to their name, and finished their season with a parade.

That could be the route the Yankees go in. They've been able to stay near first place with this roster. Just imagine if they add a few competent guys. Trading with the Cardinals can be one way for the Yankees to go in that direction.

The only drawback to Nootbar is which side of the plate he swings on. There's a chance here for the Cardinals to be a one-stop shop for the Yankees, dealing for a reliever in O'Brien, an outfielder, and also a catcher in Herrera. The latter would be what they're looking for as a righty catcher, too.

If there's an opportunity to improve the roster, even if they don't fit the exact criteria Brian Cashman and company are looking for, it doesn't mean that they should balk on a deal that makes sense value-wise. Making trades isn't an exact formula at this time of the year, when the clock is ticking, and sometimes, the best deal available isn't always the deal you sought out in the first place.

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