I agree 100%. In slot restricted airports like JFK it actually hurts AA to use a valuable slot for RJ service to an east coast city just so they can connect the dots for international pax. I could see AA still flying routes like LAX-JFK and MIA-JFK using widebodies, but stuff like JFK-BOS/DCA/ORD/RDU could be better served by B6 E190s. You would still have to figure out the issue with transferring pax between terminals quickly, but that can be accomplished.

Something like this would definitely require heavy duty contractual language, but it can be done through a CBA