MLB trade rumors: Giants to deal Madison Bumgarner? Yankees in the mix?

New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman is shopping for starting pitching. He already traded for Seattle Mariners left-hander James Paxton. Will he make a run at San Franciso Giants ace Madison Bumgarner, who will be paid $12 million in 2019?

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman is upgrading the starting rotation for 2019.

He already traded for Seattle Mariners left-hander James Paxton and has been linked to several free agents, including Patrick Corbin, J.A. Happ and Dallas Keuchel.

If Cashman wants to pull off another trade, Cleveland Indians ace Corey Kluber and Arizona Diamondbacks ace Zack Greinke are available.

Now you can add San Francisco Giants ace Madison Bumgarner to the mix, per MLB.com’s Jon Morosi:

Multiple sources indicated Monday that the Giants are willing to engage with other teams about the possibility of dealing their ace and three-time World Series champion. The Brewers and Phillies are among the teams that have had at least preliminary dialogue about trading for Bumgarner, sources say.

The Braves also checked in with the Giants regarding Bumgarner earlier this offseason, sources say, but there are no active talks or optimism for a trade with Atlanta.

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Sources say (president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi) is likely to ask for at least one high-end pitching prospect in any Bumgarner trade. According to MLB Pipeline, only one of the Giants’ top five prospects is a pitcher: right-hander Shaun Anderson, a 24-year-old viewed as a mid-rotation Major League starter.

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On the surface, the Braves appear well-positioned to build a compelling offer for Bumgarner based on their pitching-heavy farm system. Their top four prospects according to MLB Pipeline — Mike Soroka, Kyle Wright, Ian Anderson, and Touki Toussaint — are hard-throwing right-handers. But there’s no momentum for Bumgarner to be dealt to the Braves, who are beloved by many fans in his home state of North Carolina.

Hal Steinbrenner takeaways

The 29-year-old Bumgarner has made only 38 starts over the last two seasons because of injuries. But he one of the best big-game pitchers in the majors, helping the Giants win three World Series titles. In 16 career postseason appearances, he’s 8-3 with a 2.11 ERA.

According to Spotrac, Bumgarner is under contract for $12 million in 2019, after which he will hit free agency. 

Mike Rosenstein may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @rosenstein73. Find NJ.com on Facebook.