Dodgers News: Yankees Reportedly Bowed Out of Jack Flaherty Trade Over Health Concerns
The Dodgers acquired starting pitcher Jack Flaherty in a last-minute deal with the Detroit Tigers at Tuesday’s trade deadline. Los Angeles was not the only team interested in the right-hander, who is arguably the best pitching trade target this season.
Flaherty caught the attention of the New York Yankees, but his tainted medical history deterred the co-leaders of the American League East from a preliminary trade agreement, according to The Athletic.
Issues with Flaherty’s lower back is what turned the Yankees away. He had to miss one start at the beginning of July and received two injections across three weeks.
“I can’t comment on medical stuff with trades,” Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris said to reporters. “You would have to ask the other teams. Jack is healthy. If we didn’t trade him, he was going to start for us on Thursday.”
Despite missing one start last month, Flaherty posted his lowest ERA this season in July. Flaherty recorded a 1.53 ERA, the first time his ERA has been under 2.00 this season. He racked up 18 strikeouts and five walks across 17.2 innings. Batters averaged .131 against the right-hander last month.
The Yankees’ reluctancy toward Flaherty may be attributed to flashbacks from a previous starting pitching trade target.
Former Dodgers pitcher Frankie Montas was traded from Oakland to New York at the 2022 deadline. Before the trade, Montas experienced shoulder tightness and then decided he was not healthy enough to play for the Yankees. Montas only pitched 41 innings for New York, a disappointingly low amount for a traded player at the deadline.
The Yankees might worry that Flaherty will pull the same move.
For now, the Yankees’ decision to avoid Flaherty has helped the Dodgers land a strong arm for their struggling rotation.
Photo Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
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I sure hope management did their due diligence on Flaherty, or is it another bust? Watching this present lineup is so depressing, like seeing a spring training lineup or a minor league team. They should have made the move for a solid third baseman long ago when knowing an oblique on Muncy was going to be troublesome. Seeing the Dbacks and Padres creeping up, the Dodgers are in deeper quicksand than they thought even with the rehab projects coming back. It will still take them awhile to get back in the groove and they might run out of time.