I really like the “trade value” exercise as a way of understanding the nuisances involved within each player’s value equation. I do think Christian Yelich is close enough to Josh Hader for a debate. The past two seasons (2016 and 2017) Yelich has been listed overall at #23 and #27 respectively, in trade value across all of baseball as part of Fangraphs trade value series. Obviously both are incredibly valuable because beyond the potential to be an elite talent, each is a controllable asset for many years. Yelich costs quite a bit more which may ultimately give Hader the edge. I do believe the overall risk is lower with Yelich (as almost always the case when comparing the longer term outlook between a position player and a pitcher). It is always possible Yelich’s career trajectory goes the way of Nick Markakis, but barring significant injury that appears to be his floor, in my opinion.