The Yankees had too much talent and too few at-bats available. They needed to find room for exciting young talents like Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez to grow.
So, Carlos Beltran was shipped away last summer. Brian McCann was traded in the fall. Neither veteran — both now with the Astros — wanted to leave, but they understood they no longer were needed.
Those departures have helped allow the Yankees to thrive this season.
“I don’t even know if they were expecting this, but I believe in talent. I believe in opportunity. I believe that some people, that’s all they need, the opportunity to go out there and play the game and not be worried that they’re going to get sent down to the minor leagues because they don’t perform,” Beltran said before going 0-4 in Thursday’s 3-2 Astros win at Yankee Stadium.