BALTIMORE — While Michael Young would be a perfect fit for the Yankees, the AL East rival Red Sox have informed people they would be very interested in acquiring the veteran third baseman from the Phillies if he is put on the trading block.
“They want him badly,’’ an industry source said of the Red Sox, who demoted the struggling Will Middlebrooks to the minors and are playing Jose Inglesias at third base.
The Phillies, who are 7 1/2 games behind the Braves and in third place in the NL East, haven’t decided if they have enough to hang in the race or if they should be sellers before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.
Ownership doesn’t want to send a negative message by dealing players such as catcher Carlos Ruiz, whom the Yankees could use, and the right-handed hitting Young, who has a blanket no-trade clause and could veto any deal.
The Phillies had two scouts at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday.
Young, 36, is attractive to teams for several reasons.
One feature that makes him a good fit in The Bronx is that he isn’t signed beyond this season, when he earns $16 million. The Rangers are paying $10 million of that. Essentially, the Phillies owe Young $3 million for the rest of the season.
Another is that Young wouldn’t get in the way of players such as Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter and Curtis Granderson coming back from the disabled list. That would be the case with White Sox outfielder Alex Rios, who is a turnoff because, though he hits right-handed, he is owed $12.5 million next year and a $1 million buyout on a $13.5 million club option for 2015.
While Rodriguez rehabs, Young could play third , a position the Yankees thought they had covered with Kevin Youkilis, but he played 28 games and was lost to back surgery, forcing the Yankees to use David Adams, Jayson Nix and Alberto Gonzalez at third.
If Rodriguez makes it back, Young could play first base against lefties and DH. A career .301 hitter, Young was batting .280 with a .736 OPS going into last night’s game against the Dodgers in Los Angeles.
While Young makes sense, he isn’t the only intriguing name. The White Sox started last night’s action in last place in the AL Central, nine games back of the first-place Tigers.
Right-handed hitting first baseman Paul Konerko is in the final year of his contract and making $13.5 million. As a five-and-10 player, the 37-year-old can veto any deal, and is owner Jerry Reinsdorf’s favorite player.
“Jerry will do whatever Paul wants,’’ a person with knowledge of the relationship. “If Paul wants to stay, he stays. If Paul would like to move, Jerry will look into it.’’
Clearly, the Yankees have to address their lack of hitting. Even if Jeter, Rodriguez and Granderson return, what can they be expected to contribute?
Going into last night’s game against Orioles lefty T.J. McFarland, the Yankees’ .238 batting average was one point higher than the Mariners, who were last in the AL. Their 80 homers tied them for sixth with the Tigers and their .681 OPS was better than just the White Sox (.670) and Mariners (.680).
“I think other teams are going to feel that way too,’’ manager Joe Girardi said Friday when asked if adding a player or two would make a difference in the AL East, where just 8 1/2 games separated the last-place Blue Jays and first-place Red Sox.
“If you are in the lead, how do you pull away? If you are right behind, how do you catch up? As July 31 approaches, teams are going to think, ‘How can we do that?’ ”