At the 2026 MLB trade deadline, the New York Yankees added offensive help in the form of Luis Garcia Jr. and Heliot Ramos. But that didn't include one of the more key upgrades the Yankees were linked to.
Leading up to deadline day, the Yankees were strongly associated with catcher trade options, with Austin Wells' production being underwhelming. While he played well in the postseason, upgrading the catcher spot would make a lot of sense.
That's why Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller shared a bold prediction that the Yankees would swing a deal using two young pitchers to acquire Athletics' All-Star catcheR Shea Langeliers this offseason.
Yankees predicted to trade for Shea Langeliers using two young pitchers
"The Athletics trade Langeliers to the Yankees for a pair of young pitchers," Miller predicts. "It won't be Cam Schlittler. I haven't completely lost my mind. But the Yankees have four more years of Will Warren, three years left on Luis Gil and a farm system in which nine of the top 10 players are pitchers, per MLB.com's pipeline."
With the Yankees' strong organization pitching depth right now, and the Athletics' dire need for real quality young pitchers in their organization, a trade like this would make sense.
The Yankees likely want to upgrade their catcher spot, and Langeliers might be one of the best options they could target. Hunter Goodman would be great, but the Colorado Rockies held onto him through the deadline and might not trade him.
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Langeliers, on the other hand, is a very realistic trade candidate. The A's have shown a willingness to trade valuable players, with their Mason Miller trade deadline deal in 2025 the perfect example of such a move.
While the Yankees might have to include more than two young pitchers in a trade to land Langeliers, so long as Schlittler doesn't go anywhere, just about any other young pitcher should be available for trade to land Langeliers.
Can this trade actually come to fruition? Absolutely. It makes sense for the A's to trade the 23-homer All-Star catcher before he hits free agency, which is coming up.
The Yankees, meanwhile, showed serious interest in catcher trades this past season, and Langeliers would've been an obvious fit had he not gotten hurt before the deadline. But over the offseason, Brian Cashman could make his move for a new starting catcher.
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