Murphy-Hicks Trade: The Morning After

Aaron Hicks, Brian McCann, Chris Young, Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird, John Ryan Murphy, Luis Severino, Rob Refsynder, Slade Heathcott

To most of us, yesterday’s swap between the Yankees and Minnesota Twins came out of nowhere. While obviously not a blockbuster, it did make you pause and say ‘Whoa’. It seems like an easy deal given the Twins are over-stocked with young outfielders, and the Yankees are cautiously deep enough at catcher. And we knew Ca$hMoney is going to be creative, and we knew almost the entire roster was in play. I guess it’s the initial shock — especially when it’s one of our own who came up in the organization and showed he belonged on a major field field — the one at Yankee Stadium, no less.
John Ryan Murphy was a victim of his own rapid growth and promise. Jammed up with Brian McCann in front of him for three more years, and the emergence of power-hitting catcher Gary Sanchez looking more and more big league-ready, Murphy became the perfect trade chip.

All that makes sense for the Yankees, but it was Murphy’s ability to not only swing a decent bat (.267 BA, 4 home runs, .685 OPS in 115 games between 2013-15) but handle major league pitchers — everything the Yankees saw in him — that made him attractive to every club in MLB that is light on catching.
While we dream of a another homegrown ‘Core Four’, which maybe — just maybe — is in the works with Greg Bird, Luis Severino, Rob Refsynder, Slade Heathcott, Gary Sanchez and others, it’s tough to see John Ryan go.
Back to reality, it looks like Aaron Hicks will assume the role (and more) of Chris Young, who by all logic will sign somewhere else for far more ducats New York has allocated for that position.
Poking around on reaction to the trade, here’s a few things for your reading pleasure:
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