Its not official yet, but all indications point to the Yankees and also the Mariners completing an offer for Cliff Lee before tonights game, by which Lee was scheduled to face his new team. As Dave explained, the Mariners did well to acquire a top-10 prospect and others. For that Yankees the offer might be more complicated. The clear and obvious benefit may be the inclusion of Cliff Lee to the rotation. With CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte, Javier Vazquez, and Phil Hughes the Yankees curently have a strong starting five, however the acce sory for Lee represents an upgrade over every one of them except maybe Sabathia. Even so, Lee Julius Peppers Jersey has the second lowest FIP among starters during the last 3 years. Sabathia ranks fifth. They represent of 1 the best, if not the best, one-two punches in baseball. Adding any three of the other four behind them makes for the best rotation in baseball. A pitcher like Cliff Lee, even if only a rental, doesnt come cheap. The Yankees had to sacrifice their No. 1 prospect, Jesus Montero, in addition to one or two more prospects, to complete the deal. Marc Hulet ranked Montero his No. 4 AL prospect this year, Keith Law ranked him No. 10 in MLB, Baseball America ranked him No.4, as did Kevin Goldstein. Hes a Matt Forte Jersey world-cla s bat that will play at any position that is a good thing for the Mariners, because virtually every prospect pundit claims that he will not stick at catcher. Could it be worth the sacrifice of a consensus top bat to acquire three-plus months of a world-beating pitcher? Or, moreover, so why do the Yankees believe that the exchange works for them? Montero likely might have debuted for the Yankees a while in 2011, whether at catcher or like a DH. With Jorge Posada entering recent times of his contract 40 years old, the potential of adding another heavy hitting catcher would likely have been attractive. But Posada continues to be under contract, and when healthy he'll continue to play as much as po sible behind home plate. Once his contract expires after 2011, another Yankees top catching prospect, Austin Romine, might be ready for that majors. At AA this season Romine is hitting .281/.361/.432 and is headed to the Futures Game. He is widely considered a far superior defensive catcher, and it appears his bat is starting to catch up. His presence, together with another handful of catchers within the lower minors, will make the Yankees feel a bit better about dealing Montero. What further complicates this deal Eric Kush Jersey is that the Yankees not just need to be comfortable trading Montero to begin with, but have to be comfortable trading him to have an upgrade for an already strong starting rotation. This past year, when the Indians traded Lee to the Phillies, the Yankees actually were built with a rotation problem. With Chien-Ming Wang out for the season and the team hesitant to move Phil Hughes out of the bullpen, the Yankees might have used a starter. Once the other half began they used Sergio Mitre his or her fifth starter. If so Lee would have represented a significant upgrade. The scenario is different this year, with Vazquez representing the rotations weakest cog. Following a poor start he's pitched as well as the Yankees could have expected. Which makes the Montero-Lee swap seem a little worse from the Yankees perspective. The real reason I believe they moved is due to concerns with the bottom of the rotation. Phil Hughes has an innings limit, 170 to 180 innings, and while hes in a decent place heading into the break, around 100 after his start tonight, adding Lee provides them more flexibility in managing those innings. The Yankees have 2 days off all August and skipping him could be tough. Adding another starter is needed ease that proce s. Then come Burnett and Vazquez, two pitchers who've been good otherwise inconsistent this year. Vazquez, again, has recovered following a poor start, however that doesnt end concerns about him. His fastball velocity is down by about 2 mph, and the slider hasnt been as effective a weapon this season. Burnetts career has been marked by inconsistency, and that he hasnt done almost anything to buck that reputation this season. He soon started off strong, but posted a June to forget, allowing 29 runs in 23 innings throughout his five starts. He has since recovered, but like Vazquez this doesnt erase concerns. His velocity, too, is down, and the curveball hasnt been nearly as effective. While hes using a two-seamer to induce more ground balls, he is not striking out as many hitters as with the past. Adding Lee, then, helps alleviate those concerns. He gives them another dependable arm, someone they can rely on every five days without having to worry whether hell allow it to be out of the fourth inning Charles Tillman Jersey . The existence of another ace also takes the pre sure off Hughes, whom the Yankees can now afford to skip and finally move to the bullpen for the playoffs. The Yankees also realize numerous side benefits from this deal. They were, but still are, the favorites to sign Lee once he becomes a free agent this winter season. The difference is that if they re-sign him as their own player they wont sacrifice their first round pick in the strong 2011 draft. The move also prevents Lee from landing using the Twins, Rays, or Rangers, teams the Yankees might have to face in the playoffs. The swing of getting Lee pitch on their behalf and never against them is gigantic. Neither of these reasons could be a primary Charles Leno Jersey motivator in a trade, but theyre certainly worthy consolations. The final side benefit is they can now trade Vazquez for any bat. This isn't e sential, and also the Yankees might choose to use their pitching benefit to its fullest. However the allure of acquiring another bat is one that'll be difficult to ignore. The team has already lost Nick Johnson, and a recent injury setback could mark the end of his season. While Posada has taken reps at DH, he is still worth more to the Yankees at catcher. Adding a DH/OF type player would only benefit a lineup that already ranks second within the AL in runs per game. Lots of contenders can use an arm like Vazquez, therefore the Yankees shouldnt cash difficulty finding a match if theyre so inclined. If the Yankees stand to take advantage of this type of move, then why havent they done anything such as this before. At the deadline last year they declined to trade for Lee, and through the off-season they didnt enter heavily on either the Lee or the Roy Halladay deals. GM Brian Cashman has said often he would rather not pay for any player in prospects neverthele s having a big-money extension. Kyle Long Jersey He declined to get it done in 2008, when the Twins traded Johan Santana. So why now? Joel Sherman offers the insight: Yankee officials simply believe that their farm system is inside a different place today than it was in those days. For example, they've the catching and 2nd base depth organizationally to move Montero and Adams. Also, for Santana, the Yanks might have needed to include Phil Hughes and Melky Cabrera. They believed they had not one other prospect pretty much as good as Hughes, and his lo s could be devastating. And Cabrera was the starting center fielder and also the Yanks felt they'd have had to go away from organization to add a middle fielder through free agency or another trade. Now they dont have to touch the major league roster to obtain Lee. Losing a prospect isn't easy, especially now when fans can follow these players with a close eye. When that prospect is really a consensus top-10 and is playing in AAA as a 20-year-old, the lo s becomes even more painful. However for a group within the Yankees position that prospect sometimes turns into a nece sary sacrifice. There is a quantity of aging players around the roster, including Posada, Pettitte, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, and even Alex Rodriguez. Adding Cliff Lee brings them closer to another championship prior to the windows for these players close. That, I believe, may be the primary motivation behind this trade. The move hurts the Yankees over time, for the reason that theyre quitting one of the best prospects in baseball for Cyril Richardson Jersey three-plus months of a pitcher they stood a good po sibility to sign following the season. Had they waited they could have had Montero and Lee. But there is still plenty to be won and lost in those three-plus months. The Yankees obviously think that the heightened chance to win this year is worth trading someone of Monteros caliber. Regardle s of anything else, it shows the worth they put on another World Series Championship.