Brian Cashman says Yankees, Tigers didn’t match up on Jack Flaherty

PHILADELPHIA — The Yankees intended to do more ahead of Tuesday’s Trade Deadline, general manager Brian Cashman confirmed on Wednesday, including the club’s stalled bid to acquire right-hander Jack Flaherty from the Tigers.

Cashman said that the Yankees were heavily engaged with Detroit in the hours leading to the 6 p.m. ET transaction cutoff, but the clubs could not match up on values.

That clashes with a report published in The Athletic, which stated that the Yankees backed out of a preliminary trade agreement after reviewing Flaherty’s medical records. Flaherty was instead traded to the Dodgers in exchange for Minor League catcher/first baseman Thayron Liranzo and shortstop Trey Sweeney.

“I think Jack Flaherty is an exceptional starter,” Cashman said. “I had difficulty matching up with the Tigers on Jack Flaherty. I certainly would have loved to have him as a choice for us, as well as anybody else that would potentially be an upgrade on our rotation.

“Unfortunately, you get a lot of different reports going out there. At the end of the day, I would have brought Jack Flaherty in if I could have matched up. I had difficulty matching up, and that was the reason I don’t have him. Simple as that.”

Flaherty, 28, was the best starting pitcher moved ahead of this year’s Deadline. A pending free agent, he was 7-5 with a 2.95 ERA in 18 starts for Detroit.

However, Flaherty missed a start in early July due to a lower back issue, which necessitated two injections in three weeks. Since returning, he has pitched to a 1.53 ERA with 18 strikeouts across three starts.

There also may have been more pieces at work. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported that a potential three-way deal collapsed involving the Yankees, Tigers and Cardinals, in which left-hander Nestor Cortes would have gone to St. Louis. Infielder Tommy Edman was also mentioned; Edman instead went to the Dodgers.

Cashman said that the club’s previous experience with trading for right-hander Frankie Montas did not play a part in their hesitancy to complete a move. In 2022, Montas had experienced shoulder issues ahead of a trade from the Athletics, and he later acknowledged he was not fully healthy. Montas pitched only 41 innings for the Bombers, eventually requiring surgery.

“It was just unfortunate circumstances there,” Cashman said. “It didn’t create any gun-shy side of things in player acquisitions. We trust our medical people. They’re really good. They give us a lot of feedback and recommendations and cautions. Everybody comes with risk regardless.

“But ultimately, since there is so much reporting out there, in the end I could not match up with value [on Flaherty]. All the way to the end, I was talking to the Tigers regarding Jack Flaherty, and he wound up going a different direction. In the end, we failed because we couldn’t match up on value. That’s all.”

“I liked what we had before we made the moves, and I know we’ve improved since these moves,” Cashman said. “I think we have a really good team already, and it’ll get better over the course of time when certain guys come back from the IL. With the imports, we’ve made it better.”

Holding pattern for ‘The Martian’
Giancarlo Stanton’s return to the active roster has returned the Yankees to their previous stance regarding outfielder Jasson Domínguez, the club’s No. 1 prospect according to MLB Pipeline.

With Stanton, Alex Verdugo, Aaron Judge and Juan Soto all healthy, and Trent Grisham now returned to a reserve role, the Yankees do not see a current opportunity for playing time on the big league roster for Domínguez.

For now, Domínguez will remain at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he has played three games (2-for-11, two RBIs) since being activated following a left oblique strain. Dominguez’s season started late due to recovery from Tommy John surgery performed in September.

“He’s a legitimate force when he’s healthy and all the rust is knocked off,” Cashman said. “It’s exciting to know that’s an opportunity that’s there, but I have no idea past that. We like what we have currently, and it’d be nice to know that’s sitting there if we need it.”