Baseball Yankees gain Happ, lose Judge for the home stretch by Chris Passarelli July 27, 2018 The New York Yankees were busy again Thursday, scooping up J.A. Happ from the Toronto Blue Jays for Brandon Drury and Billy McKinney. It was most definitely a move where the Yankees overpaid, but it was a necessary one as Happ brings stability and a veteran presence to the back end of the Yankees’ rotation. In return, the Blue Jays get a very capable player in Drury who just happened to get Wally Pipped by Miguel Andujar and a young journeyman outfielder in Billy McKinney who has shown flashes of brilliance. Happ may be a rental but he’s been excellent against the American League East in his major league career, and although he has a 4.18 ERA, he is still 10-6 and an innings eater. In addition, Happ has been pretty good in the playoffs in both relief and starting situations, compiling a 1-1 record with a 3.72 ERA in six appearances. It’s clearly a theme that the Yankees have been picking up pitchers that have fared well in their division. The Yankees are most certainly not done improving their team. They lost Aaron Judge on Thursday night to a fractured wrist. Judge was hit by Jakob Junis in the first inning and although he hit a single in the 4th was taken out of the game and sent to the hospital for further evaluation. MRIs revealed a slight fracture in Judge’s wrist and the timetable for his return is 4-6 weeks. It’s a devastating loss for the Yankees as they lose their best overall player for a few weeks, but luckily there are a still a few days to add a quality bat in addition to the starting pitching they still need. Brian Cashman may also be looking for a backup catcher with Gary Sanchez gone until late August. As serviceable as Austin Romine has been, if he somehow gets hurt, the Yankees last resort is Kyle Higashioka. The Yankees have plenty of options in the next coming days, including a surprisingly still available free agent in Hanley Ramirez and New York Mets OF/3B Jose Bautista. Both would be cheap, quick fixes in the middle of the Yankees lineup that provide some good pop while Judge is on the shelf. Hopefully Clint Frazier is also available soon as this would be the perfect opportunity to showcase him. The young outfielder is currently in concussion protocol. It’s not the end of the world, but it certainly is not good that Judge is out for an extended period of time. However, the Yankees added another piece of the puzzle with Happ and can add some short term help while Judge is gone. This team does not rely on just one person and with Gleyber Torres back it eases the pain a little bit. Post Views: 1,850 The following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts Chris Passarelli Football Editor - Hockey Editor - New York Islanders Lead Writer - New York Lizards Lead Writer - UConn Football Lead Writer Latest posts by Chris Passarelli (see all) NFL Network to Premiere ‘The Top 100 Players of 2020’ on July 26 - July 22, 2020 The ‘Toilet Bowl’ may be coming to Western New York - July 16, 2020 Bigger is Better; SoFi Stadium Completes Largest Videoboard in Sports - July 1, 2020 Smoltz, Vrabel and Brown talk American Century Championship and Everything in Between - June 30, 2020 Related TopicsAaron JudgeBilly McKinneyBrandon DruryJ.A. HappNew York YankeesToronto Blue Jays Click to comment You must be logged in to post a comment Login Leave a Reply Cancel replyYou must be logged in to post a comment. Newsletter Subscription Can't Miss Posts! Women in Sports: NHL Network Host, Jackie Redmond by Nicholas Durst | posted on March 4, 2019 Women in Sports: Podcast Host, New York Riptide Sideline Reporter, Dani Wexelman by Luke Porco | posted on March 3, 2020 From Paramus High School to CBS Sports, Spero Dedes is making waves in sports broadcasting by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on October 27, 2020 Lochte, Dressel and Ledecky all Chasing Gold at 2021 Tokyo Olympics by Anthony Paradiso | posted on April 18, 2021 “Overtime” l Ep. 28: TopSpin Celeb-Athlete Tournament – Dec. 6, 2018 by Stefany Romero | posted on December 19, 2018 More in Baseball You Know I’m Right, Episode 112: New York Jets’ Insider Brian Costello (Audio/Video) On the 112th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 109: The Athletic’s Marc Carig (Audio/Video) On the 109th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 108: WFAN’s Sweeny Murti (Audio/Video) On the 108th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 107: New York Post’s Columnist Mike Vaccaro (Audio/Video) On the 107th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... Boulders split doubleheader against Sussex County Inter-divisional trade alert! Asdrubal Cabrera sent to the Phillies