The New York Yankees are going to have to hold steady as they navigate the next few days without star right fielder Aaron Judge, who is currently on the 10-day injured list with a strained flexor in his right elbow. And they’re not off to the best of starts, as they were on the receiving end of a 4-2 loss against division rival Tampa Bay Rays, preventing them from making up ground in the AL East standings.

With the trade deadline coming right up, the Yankees cannot pass up on the opportunity to upgrade their roster. There are no indications that they’ll be super aggressive on the market, preferring instead to pursue upgrades on the margins via deals that wouldn’t cost them their best prospects.

Whatever the case may be, it’s unlikely for the Yankees to come out of the trade deadline with the same roster they have at present. That kind of uncertainty can gnaw at a team. But for veteran Cody Bellinger, he knows the nature of the business and he’s just looking to control what he can.

“It’s kind of out of our control. We have to do what we’ve been doing, and that’s focus on the day-to-day and our plan. We have no idea of really what’s going to happen, so just kinda focus on what we can focus on and that’s all we can really do,” Bellinger told reporters following the Yankees’ loss to the Rays on Monday, via SNY’s Yankees Videos on X (formerly Twitter).

“It’s out of our control. We have to do what we’ve been doing, focus on the day-to-day and our plan.”

– Cody Bellinger on the upcoming trade deadline pic.twitter.com/9xnzpVLRNo

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The next few days should be very interesting for Bellinger and the Yankees as they try to re-establish themselves as the premier threat in the AL with a trade or two.

Yankees need to sort out their pitching woes

In the month of July, the Yankees have a terrible ERA of 6.03. Their pitching, suffice to say, has gone to crap. There’s no surprise that New York is being linked to potential trades for some of the best relievers in the entirety of MLB, as they need to reinforce their bullpen that seemingly cannot hold leads over the past month.

Even the Yankees’ starters haven’t been very good. Max Fried, coming off a dreadful start vs. the Blue Jays, is sporting a 6.52 ERA this month. Will Warren has a dismal 6.29 ERA in July. Even Carlos Rodon hasn’t been his best self.

And with Judge on the IL, the Yankees’ offense may not be good enough to cover for their pitching woes for the meantime.