Klapisch: Could Yankees turn to Lucas Duda?

NEW YORK - Tyler Austin, the Yankees’ newest first baseman, didn't exactly own the Stadium in his 2017 debut, going 0-for-3 while striking out twice and hitting into a double play. No one’s holding it against Austin; he suffered a predictable case of the jitters and the Bombers were pulverized by the Rangers, anyway.

But woven into the fabric of Saturday’s 8-1 blowout was the beginning of an important transition at the Yankees’ weakest position. They’re 29th in the majors in OPS at first base, a deficit that compelled GM Brian Cashman to release Chris Carter late Friday night. It just might lead to the Yankees acquiring Lucas Duda, but that's several weeks - and several steps - away from becoming a tangible option.

Let's work backwards in the meantime. Carter was supposed to be an insurance policy for Greg Bird in 2017. Both plans careened off course, as Carter struck out in nearly half his at-bats while Bird has languished on the disabled list since May 2.

He’s close to returning for a minor league rehab assignment, where the Yankees hope the left-handed slugger can turn back the clock to 2015. He hit 11 HRs in just 157 at-bats and was being groomed as a younger, healthier Mark Teixeira. But Bird missed all of 2016 recovering from shoulder surgery and before disappearing in an inexplicable slump last month, going 6-for-60 before being disabled.

So what’s next? The Yankees will let Austin prove he’s deserving of being the everyday first baseman, although he admitted, "I let the game speed up on me" as he suffered from first-day anxiety. Even so, some observers say the job will be Bird's to lose.

One talent evaluator firmly believes, “Bird is the better player.” But that assessment depends on which version of Bird is being evaluated. The 2015 model? No doubt; Bird had a long, powerful swing that was built for the Stadium.

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But Bird still has to account for that .100 average and convince the Bombers it was just an outlier. They desperately need more offense at first base. Once again, Aaron Judge, who blasted a sixth-inning HR off Austin Bibens-Dirkx, was the Yankees’ only legitimate threat on Saturday. He can’t do it alone.

With the trading deadline about a month away, Yankees have to at least prepare for the possibility that neither Bird nor Austin will be enough of a short-term boost for a playoff run. One Yankee official said this week, “This division is wide open,” which indicates just how much the organization is willing to invest in a go-for-it plan.

That means thinking boldly at first base, if it comes to that. And that means the Yankees would have to consider taking a run at Duda.

It’s not a crazy thought: Duda’s name has been brought up informally among Yankees’ senior officials. For now, the organization prefers to address the issue in-house. Austin will be given a long look, as will Bird. The Yankees have little appetite for being leveraged by the Mets, or any other team, as they prepare for a two-month sprint to the postseason.

Still, Duda could be a difference-maker in holding off the Red Sox. He has proven power, can handle big-market scrutiny and has played in a World Series. Duda’s transition to the Bronx would be relatively seamless, and as a free agent to be, his time in pinstripes would be short. He’d be gone right after the season and therefore be out of Bird’s way for 2018.

Furthermore, the Mets have finally reached their threshold for pain this season. Their four-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers last week convinced GM Sandy Alderson that any further resistance is futile. Duda, along with Jay Bruce, Neil Walker, Neil Walker and Curtis Granderson are in their walk-years – and will all be available as trade talks heat up in July.

The fit for the Yankees would be perfect, assuming Alderson and Cashman could agree on which pieces to swap. The situation in the Yankees’ bullpen is dire enough to probably pique their interest in Addison Reed, too. Considering how poorly Tyler Clippard performed yet again – he allowed four runs in a low-leverage setting in the ninth inning – almost anyone would be considered an upgrade. Reed could fit the bill for the seventh-inning bridge to Dellin Betances.

The Mets would likely want a prospect like third baseman Miguel Andujar, who was recently promoted  to the Yankees’ Class AAA club. The Bombers would need to throw in one more pitcher, perhaps, and the bones of a trade would be intact. And it’s not like the Yankees and Mets are entirely averse to dealing; the most notable move was the David Justice for Robin Ventura in 2002. More recently, in 2014, the Mets sent Gonzalez German to the Yankees for cash considerations.

One caveat, though: The Yankees and Mets play each other four times after the trade deadline. They have back-to-back, home-and-home games in mid-August, and the last thing Alderson (and the Wilpon family) would want is Duda embarrassing his former team with HRs into the Stadium’s short right field porch. It’s enough of a deterrent to keep the Mets from making this deal.

But the Yankees’ need for help at first base cannot be overstated. Carter has flamed out, Bird is on the DL and Austin has to deal with his nerves. If the Bombers are envisioning a path to the postseason, they’ll need more than Judge to get there.