Maybe the Red Sox and Yankees are getting used to this. For the second straight year, the two bitter AL East enemies got together to make a winter trade, making what had once been a decidedly rare occasion a suddenly annual event.
From 1997 into the 2021 season, the Red Sox and Yankees had made exactly one trade, the 2014 deal that dumped infielder Stephen Drew to New York. But the two teams got together for a trade in 2021, with the Yankees shedding Adam Ottavino’s salary, and came back with not one but two trades in 2023–a minor deal for outfielder Greg Allen, followed by the first major trade between the two teams in recent memory, when Alex Verdugo was sent to the Yankees for prospects.
On Wednesday, after the Red Sox had to give up catcher Kyle Teel in a trade with the White Sox for Garrett Crochet, Boston turned to the Bombers for a catching prospect, and swapped pitcher Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz and international pool space for young catcher Carlos Narvaez.
Yankees Eyeing Roki Sasaki
A native of Venezuela, Narvaez has been in the Yankees system since he was 17, and has shown some development as an ideal backup catcher–he strikes out a good bit but can hit for power, draws walks, is a decent runner and can fill in at first base.
He batted .254 at Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre last year, with a .370 on-base percentage and a .412 slugging mark.
The Yankees are getting a promising young arm in Rodriguez-Cruz, who has been in the minors for three seasons with the Red Sox. He is only 21, and has posted a record of 11-11 with a .261 ERA in 48 appearances, including 44 starts. He has yet to appear above Single-A ball, however.
Also of interest is the increase in bonus-pool money, which should allow the Yankees a better shot at one of the big prizes of this offseason–Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki, who has been posted to MLB teams and will meet with the Yankees today. Because Sasaki is still just 23, he can only be signed using international bonus pool cash, which can be traded among teams.
“It’s a big arm with a big desire to be great,” GM Brian Cashman said Wednesday, via the New York Post. “His intent is to be one of the game’s greatest pitchers on the planet, and we certainly would love to participate in allowing that to happen.”
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Yankees Trade Away 26-Year-Old Prospect in Deal With Hated Rival appeared first on Heavy Sports.