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This time around, the Yankees are considering at least one Gary Sanchez trade.
Sanchez endured a terrible 2020 season, being replaced as the starting playoff receiver by Kyle Higashioka. Now, two sources have told the Post the Yankees will at least listen to offers on Sanchez.
They were in contact with Yadier Molina’s agent, as first reported by MLB Network.
The Yankees are keen to understand what DJ LeMahieu will cost to keep or if he remains before deciding on a significant allocation elsewhere.
Sanchez was awarded $ 5million in arbitration last offseason and will likely get a small raise by 2021 despite his recent poor results. But the Yankees are determined not to betray him and will also need to figure out how they would replace Sanchez behind the plate.
While they have been in contact with free agent Molina, he is 38 and is coming off a poor season at home. The future Hall of Famer is said to be seeking a two-year deal and its acquisition would not save the Yankees.
James McCann is another potential target, but he won’t be cheap either after two stellar offensive seasons with the White Sox.
Among the factors the Yankees weigh before leaving Sanchez is how they plan to handle LeMahieu’s free agency.
LeMahieu, as expected, rejected the Yankees’ $ 18.9 million qualifying offer this week and the numbers to be in line for a three or four-year deal that could cost more than $ 70 million.
Until LeMahieu’s market becomes clear, the Yankees seem unlikely to make a move with Sanchez or any other player.
Sanchez, who hit 34 home runs and was an All-Star in 2019, started just two playoff games after reaching 0.147 and retiring 64 times in 178 appearances on the plateau during the coronavirus-shortened regular season.
General manager Brian Cashman has admitted that Sanchez’s future is uncertain after the playoffs.
“It’s definitely a good question, the way Gary Sanchez’s season went and the way it ended with [Higashioka] starting in the playoffs as many games as he has, ” Cashman said in October of the Yankees’ catch-up situation. “This is one of the talking points we’re going to have to focus on.”
Sanchez could end up playing in the Dominican Winter League, joining Miguel Andujar and Domingo German with Toros del Este in the Dominican Republic, although that decision is not expected to be made until next month.
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