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The New York Yankees have been busy in the trade market this season. After all the speculation, they’ve finally decided to pull off the trade that was originally reported weeks ago.
The Oakland Athletics sent former All-Star pitcher Sonny Gray to the Yankees in exchange for outfielder Dustin Fowler, pitcher James Kaprielian and infielder Jorge Mateo. The Yankees seem to be fortifying their starting rotation after previous trades bolstered their bullpen and hitting lineups.
Gray was highly sought out by a few major league teams nearing the deadline, most notably the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers. Gray is 6-5 in 16 starts this season with a 3.43 earned run average. Gray has battled with a couple of injuries the past two season.
In 2016, he was on the disabled list a couple of times and this year started on the list because of a lat strain. The Yankees would have to be sold on his health going forward with all the health issues their staff has dealt with recently.
All three of the prospects given up were ranked in the top ten of the Yankees minor league system.
Fowler was considered their best outfield prospect until he ruptured his patella tendon a little over a month ago. He’s a great young hitter with real power.
Kaprielian underwent Tommy John surgery on April 18th and won’t be ready to pitch until 2018. When healthy, he has a four-pitch repertoire with mid-90s speed on his fastball.
Mateo is considered a top three prospect in their system and does not have the injury concerns of any other player in this deal. He will leg out triples and doubles and steal plenty of bases because his blazing speed.
This trade is eerily reminiscent of a time when “The Boss” George Steinbrenner ruled the Yankees with an iron fist. There was no talk of build the farm system and keeping young players. If the Yankees wanted a guy, they got the guy.
Is he “the guy” though?
Sure the Yankees needed a high end starter, a guy that can throw hard and get through innings and a guy that can put them over the top in a playoff push.
Is Gray the guy the Yankees have traded for in yesteryear? Yes, he’s a veteran but kind of young. It seems he will have to fit in more than he will come in, take the reigns and show you how its done in the postseason. The Yankees got the guy they wanted and probably the guy they needed.
Is he “the guy” though?
Only time will tell. The Yankees are a .5 game back of first place in the American League East and hope to remain there. Gray makes his Yankees debut Thursday (8/3/17) versus the Cleveland Indians. Let’s see if his last start this year will be sometime in October.
