Nationals OF Seen As Potential Yankees Trade Fit

With Aaron Judge out, the New York Yankees need some help in the outfield at the trade deadline.

Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports

What is the one thing that the New York Yankees need to do at the Aug. 1 trade deadline — besides get outfielder Aaron Judge healthy, of course?

ESPN.com took a stab at it one month away from the trade deadline. The piece outlined what player each team should either trade for or trade away at the deadline.

As the Yankees fancy themselves buyers at the trade deadline, the piece outlined that the Yankees should trade for Washington Nationals outfielder Lane Thomas. Per ESPN:

"With the timetable on Aaron Judge's return now labeled "sometime this season," the Yankees desperately need offense -- they've been the worst-hitting team in the majors in June with an abysmal slash line. While Josh Donaldson's days in the Bronx are probably coming to an end soon, they do have DJ LeMahieu to play third, not that he has been tearing it up. The outfield can rely on Jake Bauers and Billy McKinney for only so long, so let's go there. Thomas has quietly been very good with the Nationals, with an above-average OPS+ and a batting average hovering around .300. He has got two more years of team control so the Nationals don't have to deal him, but he's an older player (he'll be 28 in August) who might never have more value than right now."

The key here for the Yankees is team control. Thomas is having a career season, and there is always risk in doing that with a player that doesn’t have that track record of consistency. But controlling Thomas’ rights for two years gives them a chance to control cost and take a low-risk gamble on a player that has hit double-digit home runs in the last two seasons.

Given the unknown of Judge’s injury, the cost may not be as high as it could be for a player like the Chicago Cubs’ Cody Bellinger, another trade target connected to the Yankees.