MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports that before the Braves traded outfielder Jason Heyward to the Cardinals in November 2014, the Yankees made a push to acquire both Heyward and shortstop Andrelton Simmons. Here’s what the proposed blockbuster looked like:
Heyward/simmons/carpenter/bj upton/c Johnson for severino/judge/banuelos/clarkin/sanchez said floated. Nyy didnt pull trigger
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 8, 2016
Heyward is now a Cub after signing an eight-year, $184 million contract and Simmons is with the Angels following this past November’s trade. The Yankees ended up trading with the Diamondbacks for shortstop Didi Gregorius to succeed Derek Jeter. Their outfield remained stable with Carlos Beltran, Brett Gardner, and Jacoby Ellsbury.
It is interesting, though, to ponder how the baseball landscape might look had the Yankees succeeded in getting both players from the Braves. Ashton Kutcher was in a movie about that.
