Colorado Rockies: Another Trevor Story trade idea with the Yankees

There is a very familiar pattern developing when it comes to Trevor Story trade rumors and ideas. Somehow, people keep trying to figure out how to send the Colorado Rockies All-Star shortstop to the New York Yankees.

Here is the latest media-driven trade proposal involving the Yankees and Colorado Rockies for Trevor Story.

The newest trade idea involving the Rockies and Yankees comes from Joel Sherman of The New York Post. In his article, Sherman proposes that the Yankees send shortstop Gleyber Torres to the Rockies in exchange for Story. A simple 1-for-1 trade, right? Well, it’s not exactly that easy.

As we have discussed in other Yankees-Rockies proposed trades, Story’s current contract is up at the end of the season, so any team trading for Story will likely only get his services for the rest of the 2021 season unless he is immediately signed to a long-term deal. That, of course, includes the Yankees, a team that, as Sherman points out, would be pushed over the luxury tax threshold for the season … unless Colorado would be willing to send the Yankees the difference in the Torres and Story contracts (roughly $14.5 million). Colorado fans are all too familiar in recent months with the Rockies sending away an All-Star infielder and cash to go along with him.

While the Yankees would receive Story and potentially just months of service from him, the Rockies would receive Torres, who is under team control through the 2024 campaign. While Torres is nowhere near the defender Story is (one of the reasons why Sherman is proposing this deal), the Rockies would receive an immediate plug-in shortstop at the Major League level in exchange for Story.

Sherman tells in his article that he asked four MLB executives about the deal and only one said yes while the other three said the control years would make it a better trade for the Rockies than New York.

The trade, however, would help the Yankees immediately, which is important in a “win now” culture, Sherman wrote.

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Torres is a two-time All-Star shortstop and had solid seasons in 2018 and 2019, finishing third in the AL Rookie of the Year balloting in 2018 after slashing .271/.340/.480 and smacking 24 homers. He followed that in 2019 by hitting 38 homers, but has not reached those kind of projected numbers in a pandemic-shortened 2020 or starting the 2021 campaign.

The 24-year-old Torres has also come under fire this season for some defensive lapses, suddenly making him expendable in the eyes of some if Colorado were willing to part with Story.

With the Rockies not entering into contract talks with Story as the season began, the future of Story in Colorado seems murky at best. The icy end in Colorado for Nolan Arenado also points toward Story being unwilling to sign a long-term deal to stay. With that in mind, it’s widely believed that the Rockies will trade Story at some point this season rather than letting him walk at the end of the year and receiving nothing in return.

Colorado got one MLB-ready piece in return for Arenado in pitcher Austin Gomber. Could a Torres-Story swap give the Rockies another? In theory, sure. After all, those same four executives Sherman polled said the Rockies couldn’t do better than Torres in a trade. But, again, it’s unlikely the Yankees would do a simple 1-for-1 trade knowing the control left on Torres. If New York were to ask for more (as in German Marquez, as mentioned by Sherman), the deal would likely quickly sour on Colorado’s side of things.

Could a third team be brought in to supply prospects to Colorado? Sherman mentions the possibility and the Rockies do need to rebuild their farm system with high-quality prospects.

After being blasted nationally for what came back to Colorado in the Arenado trade, the Rockies will hopefully be looking for a better return with Story. Could that come from the Yankees? Potentially yes, but any deal with the Yankees or any other team that includes Story will almost certainly not include Marquez as well.