The Yankees have designated catcher Chad Moeller for assignment. This was a ripple effect move starting with the trade for Ivan Rodriguez. Moeller played in 32 games for the Yanks this season and he was 17 for 75 (.227 avg, .643 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 1 homer and 8 RBIs. The Yankees probably hope that Moeller will accept a minor league assignment so he can be an insurance policy. The Yankees have recalled Chris Britton to take Farnsworth’s spot in the bullpen. Britton has pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Yankees this season and he is 0-0 with a 1.29 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP.

The Yankees couldn’t resist fleecing another team before the trade deadline so they moved 25-year old shortstop Alberto Gonzalez to the Nationals for righty pitcher Jhonny Nunez. Gonzalez didn’t have much of a future in New York behind Derek Jeter at shortstop so trading him made perfect sense. Gonzalez played in 28 games for the Yankees this season and he was 9 for 52 (.173 avg, .444 OPS) with 4 runs scored and 1 RBI. He played in 40 games in his career with the Yanks and he was 10 for 66 (.152 avg, .393 OPS) with 7 runs scored and 2 RBIs. In other words, he was nothing to get excited about.

22-year old righthander Jhonny Nunez was the Nationals’ #25 prospect coming into this season according to Baseball America. He has pitched in 26 games (17 starts) in AA+AAA ball this season and he is 2-8 with a 4.85 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. Nunez has whiffed 90 batters in only 89 minor league innings this season showing what kind of stuff he has. The Yankees have won on all three trades they have made in the last week.

The Yankees have traded 35-year old righty relief pitcher LaTroy Hawkins to the Houston Astros for 22-year old 2B Matt Cusick. Hawkins has been awful for the Yanks this season as he pitched in 33 games (0 starts) and he was 1-1 with a 5.71 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. The Yanks won’t miss him one bit. The Yanks actually got a semi-decent prospect for him in lefty swinging 2B Matt Cusick. Cusick was the #29 prospect in the Astros’ system coming into this season according to Baseball America. He has played in 93 games in A-ball this season and he was 99 for 348 (.284 avg, .811 OPS) with 54 runs scored, 8 homers, 36 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. This was a good trade for the Yanks.

The Yankees have acquired 36-year old catcher Ivan Rodriguez from the Tigers for righty relief pitcher Kyle Farnsworth. This was a no-brainer move for the Yankees who needed a catcher due to Jorge Posada’s year ending injury. Rodriguez has played in 82 games for the Tigers this season and he was 89 for 302 (.295 avg, .755 OPS) with 33 runs scored, 5 homers, 32 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Rodriguez should fit right in with the Yankees and he should really help them on defense as he still has a howitzer attached to his right shoulder. Rodriguez has now played in 2,234 games in his major league career and he is 2,584 for 8,549 (.302 avg, .817 OPS) with 1,242 runs scored, 293 homers, 1,214 RBIs and 120 stolen bases. The Yankees like to collect Hall of Fame players for the stretch run and Rodriguez definately qualifies.

The Yanks shouldn’t miss Kyle Farnsworth too much as a few of their own youngsters should be able to handle some late work. Farnsworth pitched in 45 games (0 starts) for the Yankees this season and he was 1-2 with 1 save, a 3.65 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. This was a good move for the Yankees but they aren’t likely done dealing yet as they are still in the market for a starting pitcher.

Robinson Cano started slowly again this season as usual which has caused his overall numbers to not look that impressive. He has played in 102 games this season for the Yankees and he is 103 for 385 (.268 avg, .703 OPS) with 42 runs scored, 9 homers and 48 RBIs. Cano has really been hot this month for the Yankees as he is 30 for 83 (.361 avg, .945 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 3 homers and 15 RBIs. Cano is hot this month but he’s played pretty well since the beginning of May. From May until today Cano is 87 for 279 (.312 avg) with 36 runs scored, 9 homers and 41 RBIs. Expect Cano to stay hot and the Yankees need him to keep it up now that they are without Jorge Posada for the rest of the season.