The Yankees have a catcher problem, and everybody in baseball knows it. So with the August 3 deadline closing in, New York is doing what desperate contenders do: calling around on basically every available option at the position. That list reportedly starts with Adley Rutschman.
Jon Heyman laid out the Yankees' full catching search, from Rutschman to Jeffers to Stephenson.
Yankees are among many teams to check on 3-time All-Star/switch-hitting catcher Adley Rutschman. NYY is casting a wide net for catching need. Ryan Jeffers, pending free agent, seemed logical but Twins suggest they’re a buyer now. Tyler Stephenson, others are on NYY list
Rutschman is the biggest name on the board, a 3-time All-Star and switch-hitter who'd instantly be the best catcher in the Bronx in years. But this one's complicated. Rutschman is currently dealing with left wrist inflammation, the Orioles aren't in any rush to move him, and dealing a franchise catcher to a hated division rival is historically not something Baltimore does for fun. Still, Heyman's report makes clear the Yankees are at least making the call, along with a handful of other teams.
The more logical fallback was supposed to be Ryan Jeffers, the Twins' pending free-agent catcher who's been raking this year. But that path just got messier. Minnesota GM Jeremy Zoll has said publicly the Twins intend to be buyers at the deadline, not sellers, which muddies any Jeffers-to-New York scenario that looked straightforward a few weeks ago.
That's why Tyler Stephenson and others are also in the mix. When your top target is hurt and stuck on a division rival, and your backup plan's team suddenly wants to keep winning, you widen the net. That's exactly what the Yankees are doing here — checking every door instead of betting everything on one.
None of this means a deal is close. It means New York is doing its homework with the clock running. Expect the catching rumors to stay loud right up until the deadline, with Baltimore's stance on Rutschman and Minnesota's actual deadline behavior as the two things to watch most closely.