The Yankees have had scouts watching the Marlins lately as the two teams have discussed a couple of players, but OF Cody Ross is one name that keeps coming up in the papers.
According to George King and Mark Hale of the NY Post, the Yankees and Marlins are not anywhere near a deal yet because the asking price for Ross is too high. The Post hasn’t said what the Marlins have asked the Yankees for, but they did report that they have asked the Braves for former Yankee LHP Mike Dunn in a deal.
Ross, 29, is in the fifth full season of his career, is an outfielder who can play all three positions, and is earning $4.5 million this year. That last part is why the Marlins are likely to deal him. He’s the fourth highest paid player on their team and is arbitration eligible after this season, which will only make him more expensive.
So maybe the Marlins are asking a lot for Ross now, but it is likely that the asking price will come down, at least slightly. It might not drop to a level the Yankees are comfortable with, but it is Brian Cashman’s style to monitor the situation until he is moved.
Ross would be perfect for the Yankees as a right handed platoon with outfielder Curtis Granderson. Ross has a career OPS-plus of just 106, not terrible, but that number jumps to 136 against lefties. Meanwhile the Yankees fears about Granderson hitting lefties has been all too real. Granderson’s OPS-plus against southpaws is a lowly 65.
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