It’s just the middle of June and the summer trade season is already upon us. First reported by Jeff Passan of ESPN, the Yankees have acquired 1B/DH Edwin Encarnacion from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for 19-year-old RHP Juan Then.
Despite recent cries to upgrade the clubs starting pitching, Brian Cashman has made what’s already good even better — the lineup. Through 65 games this season, the 36-year-old slugger is hitting .241/.356/.531 with an American League-leading 21 home runs and a 139 wRC+. With the return of Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton likely to be next week, the Yankees face an interesting set of moves within their roster and lineup, moves they, of course, already have planned out.
As for what the club’s now even more dangerous lineup could look like, here’s a guess:
- DJ LeMahieu 3B
- Aaron Judge RF
- Aaron Hicks CF (S)
- Giancarlo Stanton LF
- Edwin Encarnacion DH
- Gary Sanchez C
- Didi Gregorius SS (L)
- Luke Voit 1B
- Gleyber Torres 2B