As general manager of the New York Yankees, it's not in Brian Cashman's blood to stand idly by while the Boston Red Sox add one of the five best pitchers in baseball to their riches. But even Cashman had to hand it to the rival Red Sox for acquiring ace Chris Sale in a blockbuster Monday afternoon.
Asked to describe the trade, which marries Sale with two of the last five AL Cy Young winners to form a "Big Three" rotation, Cashman turned to another sport to appropriately contextualize the significance.
"That's a wow," he told reporters at baseball's winter meetings. "Boston is the Golden State Warriors of baseball now. They've got their Durant and Green and Thompson and Curry."
If Sale is Kevin Durant, the big fish of the NBA's most recent offseason, then David Price and Rick Porcello are worthy Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson comparisons.
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Price and Porcello are the incumbents who helped Boston finish fourth in MLB in team ERA last season. Porcello was awarded his first Cy Young; Price won it in 2012 with the Tampa Bay Rays, and twice has finished as runner up. Lest it be forgotten, Drew Pomeranz, the most coveted pitcher moved at last year's deadline, slots in as Boston's No. 4 with two-time All-Star Clay Buchholz behind him or in the bullpen.
Sale might be the best starting pitcher in baseball who has yet to win a Cy Young.
At 27, the left-hander added a fifth consecutive All-Star selection to his resume in 2016 and finished the season 17-10 with 233 strikeouts in 226 2/3 innings pitched.
The Red Sox parted with their two best prospects, including consensus MLB No. 1 Yoan Moncada, to bring Sale into the fold.
FAGAN: Sale makes Boston's rotation stupid good
Cashman said the Yankees kicked the tires on Sale, but never pursued a deal seriously because of the sticker shock. New York doesn't have Boston's prospect depth.
"It is not a deal that we should be doing at this moment in time, but we're going to get to the point where that is a deal that we will be in play on," he said. "But it is a timing thing."
Instead, Cashman said the Yankees have offers on the table for top free-agent relievers Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen. But neither would make a splash the size of Sale.
Asked to describe where the Yankees fit into his NBA equivalency, Cashman admitted, "I don't know."
"I couldn't tell you," he said. "If it is the NBA, we're in the pack of contenders looking to take Golden State down. That's a good question."
