NEW YORK — The New York Yankees’ starting pitching depth, considered the team’s greatest strength going into the regular season, has thinned to the point where their front office might have to consider acquiring help before the Aug. 3 trade deadline.Saturday’s 11-4 loss to the Minnesota Twins showed that rookie righty Brendan Beck likely isn’t the answer the team is looking for after Carlos Rodón (elbow inflammation) joined Max Fried on the injured list Friday.“With (Rodón) going down, you’re really tapping into the depth there a little bit today,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Again, though, that’s part of the long season.”The Yankees' defense: An average unit making ugly mistakes?Beck was crushed for five runs in 3 2/3 innings, giving up three home runs and two doubles. His fastball averaged 92.7 mph, he missed his locations with his secondary pitches and he looked overmatched by Twins hitters.Beck and Elmer Rodríguez — the Yankees’ No. 6 prospect — are the Yankees’ main depth starters, and neither has instilled much confidence with their performances in the major leagues this season.It doesn’t help the Yankees that the rest of their rotation is in a precarious position, or that most teams’ front offices don’t start seriously talking trades until after the MLB Draft, which starts on July 11.Before Saturday’s loss, Boone said the Yankees hoped Rodón might be able to resume throwing within a week, though there was “no timeline necessarily yet” for his return. The 33-year-old lefty had been pitching relatively well with a 3.30 ERA in nine starts. This injury is particularly worrisome considering his offseason elbow surgery delayed his debut until May 10, and because tests had detected “heavy” inflammation in the joint.Add the question marks surrounding Rodón to the fact that Fried (elbow bone bruise) doesn’t seem likely to return for at least a few more weeks. Boone said Fried was scheduled to throw a two-inning, 35-pitch simulated game Sunday and that the Yankees would have to build him up slowly.“So that will ultimately be a decision, like, when do we take him?” Boone said. “Is it at 60 pitches? Is that at 75-80 pitches? Those will be the conversations we have over the next couple of weeks as he continues to build up.”Then there are the workload worries with the healthy Yankees starters.The most innings Ryan Weathers has thrown in a season was 137 1/3 in 2023. Last year, he totaled just 104 1/3 innings, and he’s already at 88 1/3 over 16 starts with a 4.08 ERA this season. It’s long been speculated that as Weathers’ innings rise, the Yankees could consider shifting him to the bullpen, but they may not have that luxury if the rotation continues taking hits.Though Cam Schlittler might be the early favorite for the American League Cy Young Award with a 2.08 ERA over 18 starts, he’s already at 104 innings. His career-high came last year when he threw 149 2/3 innings between the minors and the majors. The Yankees can’t afford for anything to happen to him, both for their short- and long-term futures.Worry over Schlittler’s workload might compel the Yankees to advise him not to pitch in the All-Star Game, even though he has a chance to be picked as the AL’s starter.Plus, Rodríguez hasn’t been very good over four major-league starts this year (4.76 ERA, 17 innings), struggling with his command, and Luis Gil (shoulder inflammation) is on the Triple-A injured list after struggling in spring training and to start the season.Even when Fried and Rodón return, both have injury histories that don’t inspire confidence. Clarke Schmidt (Tommy John surgery) could be on track to return by September, but the team might be more inclined to build him as a reliever to get him back faster.Fortunately for the Yankees, Gerrit Cole has been mostly good since returning from Tommy John surgery (eight starts, 4.01 ERA) and has a history as a workhorse. Will Warren (3.73 ERA, 17 starts) set a career high last year with 162 1/3 innings and should be fine.It isn’t clear who might wind up available via trades if the Yankees end up hunting for a starting pitcher. As of Saturday afternoon, there were six teams within 5 1/2 games of the final AL wild-card spot. The Detroit Tigers were 6 1/2 games out, and there’s been speculation that they could sell and trade Tarik Skubal and/or Casey Mize. The struggling New York Mets could look to unload Freddy Peralta, but he’s having a down season by his standards. If the Twins looked to trade Joe Ryan, there would probably be plenty of suitors.Boone said that the Yankees’ starting depth “should still be a strength, and hopefully as we go here the next few weeks, we get some more reinforcements, too.”Still, with the Yankees’ depth thinning and with questions around their mainstays, they might need to look outside for help.