The New York Yankees are reportedly “unlikely” to pursue Kansas City Royals outfielder Andrew Benintendi, per MLB Network insider Jon Heyman.
The decision to withdrawal trade interest reportedly stems from Benintendi’s status as an unvaccinated player.
“Yankees are unlikely to continue pursuit of Andrew Benintendi since he is unvaccinated. NYY has 6 games left in Toronto and could meet Jays in playoffs. Yanks are the one team to send their complete roster to play in Toronto,” Heyman reports.
Ahead of this week’s series against the Blue Jays, Royals manager Mike Matheny revealed that Benintendi is among 10 Kansas City players not vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus.
The Yankees have an away series against the Blue Jays in late September. They could also face off against the AL East squad in the postseason.
New York also had reported interest in Benintendi’s outfielder teammate Michael A. Taylor. Unfortunately, Taylor is also among the Royals’ 10 unvaccinated players.
The Yankees currently have no unvaccinated players on their roster.
Where else should the AL East leading squad look ahead of this year’s trade deadline?