Todd Frazier Pulls a Switcheroo, Joins Yankees Instead

The dominant narrative of the Todd Frazier trade market has been that he was going to the Red Sox. Indeed, the Sox were in desperate need of a 3B, having just DFA’d free-agent-mistake Pablo Sandoval. But in a sudden turn of events, the Red Sox’s biggest rivals, the Yankees, landed Frazier and White Sox RPs David Robertson and Tommy Khanle in exchange for Tyler Clippard and a wealth of prospects. Let’s break this trade down.

To the Yankees

Todd Frazier

Frazier was heavily favored to land in Boston, but instead he’ll wake up Wednesday as a New York Yankee. While I discussed both possibilities as a part of our trade deadline series, I was relatively surprised that Frazier ended up as a Yankee — the Red Sox seemed to have the bigger need, and negotiations seemed further along with the Boston.

Frazier bolsters a Yankee team that has desperately needed a solid bat at 3B — Chase Headley’s below average bat and poor discipline has hurt the Yankees in plenty of games. Frazier’s home run prowess will be on full display in the home run friendly Yankee Stadium, so expect him to provide a solid power bat.

I’ve also seen some speculation that the Yankees will use him at 1B too, which makes him a bit of a wildcard — while Frazier has appeared in 94 career games at 1B, a good portion of his value is tied to his 3B defense — the Yankees will be taking on a bit of a risk by playing him at 1st.

Frazier will be a FA after this season, and given the Yankees’ substantial prospect depth at 3B, it seems as though the Yankees will let him walk so that they can replace him from within the organization, likely with prospect Gleyber Torres.

David Robertson

After a relatively disappointing 2016, Robertson bounded back in a big way in the first half of 2017, pitching to his best ERA since 2013 and cutting his walks substantially. A previous All-Star for the Yankees, Robertson moved into the closer role in Chicago in 2015 and excelled for an otherwise mediocre team. Robertson helps the Yankees shore up their already top-tier bullpen, which is essential for the Yankees’ postseason success.

Robertson looks to try to find a role within a bullpen that already has the likes of Aroldis Chapman and Dellin Betances at the head, but he might be able to carve out a niche as a 7th inning man. His consistently high FIP in high leverage situations (career 2.71 FIP) indicates that he might be best used as a super-reliever (ala Andrew Miller, another former Yankee) — coming into high pressure situations to get big outs.

Tommy Kahnle

Sneakily the biggest piece of this trade is Tommy Kahnle, a reliever who has quietly been having an insanely good season. Kahnle struggled for a good part of his career, but is currently 3rd among qualified relievers in FIP and 4th in K/9.

Kahnle isn’t scheduled to hit free agency until 2021, so if his 2017 is even partially sustainable, the Yankees are picking up a piece of their bullpen that could stick around for years to come. Kahnle has been better than Robertson, better than Betances, better than Chapman, and even better than Miller so far — he could be yet another piece of the Yankees’ new and improved super-bullpen.

(Also of note — Kahnle was drafted by the Yankees initially, but was lost in a rule V draft a few years back. The Yankees could have had Robertson and Kahnle on the team already!)

To the White Sox

Tyler Clippard

Clippard’s peripherals had been tanking since 2015, but he managed to outperform them, until they caught up to him back in 2017. Clippard publicly lost his 7th-inning role a few days ago, and now he’s lost his team too.

Clippard doesn’t need to be anything special for the rebuilding White Sox, but it’s difficult to see the 32-year-old recapturing the magic with a change of scenery. He might be serviceable out of the bullpen for the White Sox, but the main reason to include him in the deal was to free up some space in the bullpen for Joe Girardi’s shiny new bullpen toys.

Ian Clarkin

Clarkin’s biggest claim to fame might end up being drafted behind offensive juggernaut Aaron Judge, but despite numerous injury setbacks, Clarkin looks like he’s finally getting it together down in level A+, where he’s pitched to a 2.61 ERA in 72.1 IP. All of his injuries will be red flags for the rest of his career, but he’s a risk that the White Sox are willing to take.

Blake Rutherford

The main piece sent to the White Sox, Rutherford began the season ranked No. 45 in the Baseball America top 100 prospects list, and has continued to produce in the minor leagues. A 5-tool player whose power is still developing, Rutherford was taken in the first round of the 2016 draft and produced immediately, slashing .351/.415/.570 in his first season of pro ball.

Giving up Rutherford has to pain the Yankee front office, but considering the wealth of talent in their farm system and the youth of their core, I doubt that they’re worried about missing out on an impact prospect; especially with Judge a Yankee until he goes through arbitration, Ellsbury under contract until 2021, and Clint Frazier on the mend.

Tito Polo

Polo came to the Yankees originally as a part of the Ian Nova deal, and has continued to hit and hit and hit for the Yankees. Only recently has his power developed, posting stellar numbers for West Virginia last season and Trenton Thunder this season. Polo could be an underrated pickup by Chicago, but at the very least, he has an 80 grade name.