Yankees Must Trade For $81 Million All-Star After Luke Weaver Injury
Yankees Must Trade For $81 Million All-Star After Luke Weaver Injury originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Yankees' pitching depth has been tested all year, with names like Will Warren, Ryan Yarbrough and Carlos Carrasco shouldering the impact of injuries to Gerrit Cole and Luis Gil.
Advertisement
The bullpen has remained fairly unscathed, with the recent return of Jonathan Loaisiga adding depth and players like JT Brubaker, Fernando Cruz and Jake Cousins ramping up to return from injury.
However, closer Luke Weaver was announced to be going on the injured list with a hamstring strain suffered over the weekend, an injury that could sideline him for several weeks.
In the wake of this, the Yankees know who they need to call.
St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Ryan Helsley (56) pitches in relief in the ninth inning against the New York Mets at Busch Stadium.Tim Vizer-Imagn Images
For quite some time now, the Yankees have been linked to two-time All-Star closer Ryan Helsley from the St. Louis Cardinals. Helsley has consistently made headlines for his sizzling fastball that has eclipsed 104 miles per hour, and notched 49 saves in 2024, a club record.
Advertisement
Despite being the closer for the surprisingly competitive Cardinals, Helsley could be made available due to his upcoming free agency. St. Louis clearly values their star, who has pitched to a sub-3.00 ERA in four straight seasons, but his price tag could ultimately prove too costly.
The Yankees have the kind of prospect haul to acquire Helsley, who wouldn't be as expensive as the Athletics' Mason Miller or Marlins' Sandy Alcantara, for example.
One preseason trade proposal from the Hudson Reporter had the Yankees dealing No. 6 prospect Chase Hampton along with starter Marcus Stroman in exchange for Helsley and starter Miles Mikolas. That was in January, though, and Hampton underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery in February.
Where things get spicy is if the Yankees decide to make struggling reliever Devin Williams available in a potential trade, because it would be hard to conceive of the Cardinals willingly freeing up Helsley, who's been the rock in an otherwise inconsistent bullpen, without getting a reliever in return.
Advertisement
The Yankees could package middle relievers like Mark Leiter Jr (free agent after 2026) and Carrasco, who can pitch decent innings out of the bullpen or in spot starts.
A deal could get done, but the Yankees could find the price tag too expensive given Weaver's absence is listed as four to six weeks currently.
Related: Dodgers Announce Surprising Lineup Change Ahead of Yankees Game
Related: Yankees Announce Jazz Chisholm Jr. News Before Dodgers Series
Related: Yankees Predicted to Add Unexpected 21-Year-Old DJ LeMahieu Replacement
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 3, 2025, where it first appeared.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NBA Commissioner Finally Addresses Finals Court Debate Before Game 2
NBA Commissioner Finally Addresses Finals Court Debate Before Game 2 originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Every year during the NBA Finals, fans point out the same thing: there's nothing on the court that shows it's the Finals. Advertisement The league used to place a large Larry O'Brien Trophy logo at center court, giving the series a unique look. That lasted through 2009. In 2010, the NBA switched to a smaller "The Finals" script logo along the sideline, but even that stopped in 2014. The chatter from fans has continued through these NBA Finals between the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. With two smaller market teams facing off and no Finals logo in sight, Game 1 felt more like a regular-season game. General view of the Finals logo on the court prior to game four of the 2014 NBA Finals.© Bob Donnan-Imagn Images On Friday, two days before Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver finally addressed the topic while attending an NBA Cares charity event at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Oklahoma County. Advertisement Silver admitted the league will look at bringing the Finals logo back next season. "I think for a media-driven culture, whether it's people watching live or seeing those images on social media, it's nice when you're looking back on highlights and they stand out because you see that trophy logo or some other indication that it's a special event. So, we'll look at it," Silver told reporters via Sam Amick on The Athletic. Silver also shared the reason the NBA stopped putting the Finals logo on the court, citing "slipperiness." "One of the reasons we moved away from the logos on the courts is — whether it was perception or reality — there was a sense that maybe the logos added some slipperiness to the court, and it was a change sort of on the court that was coming just at the time of the finals," Silver added. Advertisement "Maybe it's for superstitious reasons or just a sense from teams that we shouldn't be changing things around such important competition. That's largely why we stopped putting the logos on the court." Related: Tyrese Haliburton's Girlfriend Jade Jones Flexes NBA Finals Outfit with One Word Related: Tyrese Haliburton's Postgame Moment with His Dad Is Turning Heads This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Charles Barkley Drops Retirement Plans After Final 'Inside the NBA' TNT Episode
Charles Barkley Drops Retirement Plans After Final 'Inside the NBA' TNT Episode originally appeared on Athlon Sports. "Inside the NBA" has been a staple for basketball fans for the past 36 years, and on Saturday night, TNT aired its final episode. Shaquille O'Neal, Kenny Smith, Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, and the rest of the crew aren't going away, though, with the show moving to ESPN starting next season. Advertisement It was a bittersweet moment for everyone at TNT. But despite the move, the crew will continue working with TNT and ESPN simultaneously. Barkley was a guest on the "Dan Patrick Show," and said, "If they're being honest, we're gonna probably work on ESPN one-third or half the time." Barkley has been outspoken about his concerns with the move because of his schedule. He has made it clear he doesn't want to take on more work as he is set to move between the two networks. "If they start trying to work me too much between ESPN and TNT, I'm just gonna walk on home," Barkley added. Advertisement Barkley went on to discuss his retirement plans, saying he has seven years left on his TNT deal, but he's only got two more years in him. "I actually have seven years left on my contract," Barkley stated. "I'm like, yeah, there's no way I'm working seven years. I said, I'm gonna be a good soldier for Kenny, Ernie, and Shaq, and the people I work with. Because I love the people I work with, especially behind the scenes. "I said, but the best I can do is two years. And them other five years, they got no chance of happening. So I said, you know what, I'll give y'all two years. They're like, can we get three? I said, I just told you, I ain't gonna give you two." 11-time NBA All-Star and "Inside the NBA" host Charles Terada-Imagn Images The 16-year NBA legend also spoke about what he's going to be doing at TNT now that the show is moving to ESPN. He said he and the rest of his crew filmed a "pilot" a month ago for TNT and called it the "stupidest (expletive) I've ever seen." Advertisement "TNT is trying to do something stupid behind the scenes," Barkley added. "We taped a pilot about a month ago. And it was the stupidest (expletive) I've ever seen in my life... Barkley said TNT wants to have a show with no "basketball highlights." "Number one, we won't have basketball highlights," Barkley said. "But also, we're probably going to be going up against the NBA game. And anybody who likes basketball ain't going to say, hey, you know what, let me turn off an NBA game that's on Amazon, ESPN, or NBC to go watch these four dudes sit around and talk about nothing." Related: Charles Barkley Didn't Hesitate When Naming the Face of the NBA This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Reveals His Favorite Basketball Player of All Time Without Hesitation
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Reveals His Favorite Basketball Player of All Time Without Hesitation originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is gearing up for Game 2 of the 2025 NBA Finals after a season to remember. Advertisement The 26-year-old won his first MVP award after leading the Thunder to the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with a 68-14 record. In doing so, he averaged 32.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 6.4 assists per game. Gilgeous-Alexander continues to make a big impact on the game of basketball. While young fans now look up to the seventh-year guard, it's worth remembering that he was once in their shoes, and he had a basketball idol of his own. Oklahoma City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2).© NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images On Saturday, he spoke to the media and admitted Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant is his "favorite player of all time." 'That's probably my favorite player of all time," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Never got the chance to meet him to answer your question but not only me, kids all across the world, his influence has gone through the roof, and his legacy will be remembered forever because of the competitor and the basketball player that he was. Hopefully, I'm somewhere close to that as a basketball player one day. But he was a special talent, special person, and God rest his soul.' Bryant is one of the greatest players to ever pick up a basketball. He was drafted No. 13 overall in the 1996 NBA Draft and went on to play 20 seasons for the Lakers. The 6-foot-6 guard was a five-time champion, a two-time Finals MVP, the 2008 league MVP, an 18-time All-Star and an 11-time All-NBA First Team selection. Advertisement Sadly, he lost his life in a helicopter accident alongside his daughter Gianna on Jan. 26, 2020. Related: NBA Commissioner Finally Addresses Finals Court Debate Before Game 2 Related: Tyrese Haliburton's Postgame Moment with His Dad Is Turning Heads This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
