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Update: Yankees acquire Cameron Maybin from Indians

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(Presswire)

2:59pm ET: The Yankees have announced the trade and it is as reported: Maybin for cash. Severino was indeed moved to the 60-day injured list to clear a 40-man roster spot. The Yankees added Maybin to their big league roster and he is on his way to join the team.

12:20pm ET: According to Jack Curry, the Yankees have acquired veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin from the Indians. Jon Heyman says it’s a cash trade, and George King notes the Yankees had interest in Maybin after Aaron Hicks got hurt in Spring Training. The Yankees haven’t announced the trade yet.

Maybin, 32, has a .216/.388/.275 (94 wRC+) batting line through 14 Triple-A games this year. He put up an 88 wRC+ as a fourth outfielder with various MLB teams in both 2017 and 2018, and that’s pretty much what we should expect going forward. Below-average bat, slightly above-average glove.

The Yankees have been decimated by injuries this season, especially in the outfield, so Maybin is a warm body to help get them through the next few weeks. Here is the current outfield depth chart:

  1. Aaron Judge (out with oblique injury)
  2. Giancarlo Stanton (out with biceps/shoulder injury)
  3. Aaron Hicks (out with back injury)
  4. Brett Gardner
  5. Clint Frazier (out with ankle injury)
  6. Mike Tauchman

Maybin gives the Yankees three actual outfielders — natural infielder Tyler Wade started in left field the last two days — so hooray for the bare minimum. The Yankees have some interleague games coming up in National League parks and there was no way they could go into those with two real outfielders.

Earlier today the Yankees put Frazier on the injured list and called up Joe Harvey, and also optioned Jonathan Loaisiga to Triple-A Scranton. Loaisiga is the move to get Maybin on the roster. I assume Luis Severino will be transferred to the 60-day injured list to clear a 40-man roster spot.

Yankees option Chad Green to Triple-A Scranton

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(Sean M. Haffey/Getty)

Chad Green has reached the end of his leash. The Yankees optioned Green to Triple-A Scranton this afternoon, the team announced. Stephen Tarpley was called up in a corresponding move. Also, Gary Sanchez was activated off the injured list and Kyle Higashioka was sent down, as expected.

Last night Green loaded the bases with no outs and allowed a grand slam to Justin Bour. He’s been tagged for 14 runs and four homers in 7.2 innings this season, matching his 2017 totals in 61.1 fewer innings. Green has a 16.43 ERA (10.03 FIP) and opponents are hitting .395/.465/.763 against him.

“Just frustrated,” Green told Kristie Ackert following last night’s game. “I feel good. Everybody goes through a point where they battle mechanics a little bit, but we’re at a point where we have to fight through that and still perform to get guys out. I’m not doing that.”

Aaron Boone indicated the Yankees were not ready to send Green down after last night’s game — “We’ll keep working at it and try and come alongside him and figure it out together,” he told Ackert — though these decisions get made above the manager’s head. Clearly, something had to be done.

If you’re curious, Green needs to spend 63 days in the minors to delay his free agency, though I would not worry about that at all. Once he gets things straightened out and is ready to help, call him right back up. How long will it take to get right? I have no idea. Hopefully it happens quick.

Tommy Kahnle and Luis Cessa jumped Green in the bullpen pecking order recently, so I imagine they’ll see some higher leverage work going forward, especially Kahnle. Tarpley was on the Opening Day roster but barely used earlier this year. He’s more of a lower leverage option.

Yankees sign Brad Miller to minor league contract

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(Duane Burleson/Getty)

The Yankees have signed infielder Brad Miller to a minor league contract, the team announced. They did not say where he’s been assigned, but I assume it is Triple-A Scranton. Steven wrote about Miller as a potential target after he was designated for assignment Indians last week.

Miller, 29, was in Spring Training with the Dodgers this year, and when he didn’t make their Opening Day roster, he hooked on with Cleveland. He hit .250/.325/.417 (96 wRC+) with one home run in 40 plate appearances before Jason Kipnis returned from the injured list to reclaim the second base job. Miller ripped the Indians after being let go.

Once a stathead fave and an overrated Mariners prospect …

… Miller has suited up for three different teams in the last 12 months, and he’s a career .240/.313/.409 (99 wRC+) hitter in over 2,500 big league plate appearances. He even had a 30-homer season with the Rays in 2016. Brutal defense all around the field (career -51 DRS) makes him a replacement level player at this point at this point in his career.

The Yankees have been hammered by injures this season and Miller can play all four infield spots as well as some outfield, so he’ll help replenish depth. It is possible he will be called up to replace Thairo Estrada on the bench at some point, maybe after some tune-up at-bats with the RailRiders. We’ll see.

Update: Gio Gonzalez opts out of minor league contract

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(Presswire)

Monday: The Yankees declined to add Gonzalez to their 25-man MLB roster and instead granted him his release, the team announced. He’s now a free agent. Kinda figured this was where this was heading.

Sunday: Gonzalez did indeed exercise his opt-out clause prior to yesterday’s deadline, reports Dan Martin. The Yankees have until tomorrow to release him or add him to the big league roster. I’d bet on the former, but what do I know. We’ll see.

Friday: According to Mark Feinsand, veteran lefty Gio Gonzalez is planning to opt out of his minor league contract with the Yankees this weekend. His opt-out date is Saturday, and once he triggers the opt-out clause, the Yankees will have 48 hours to release him or add him to their 25-man roster.

Gonzalez, 33, signed with the Yankees on March 19th. His contract includes a $3M base salary at the MLB level plus an additional $300,000 per start. Add in the luxury tax and it’s $396,000 per start. Yeesh. Last season Gonzalez threw 171 innings with a 4.21 ERA (4.16 FIP) with the Nationals and Brewers.

Weather permitting, Gonzalez will make one final start with Triple-A Scranton tonight. He has a 6.00 ERA (3.22 FIP) in three starts and 15 innings with the RailRiders, though one terrible start is skewing the numbers. Gonzalez has been solid the last two times out, plus he has tonight’s start as well.

The Yankees will be without Luis Severino until June, maybe July, though Domingo German has looked pretty good as the fill-in starter. That said, there’s no such thing as too much pitching depth. James Paxton, CC Sabathia, and Masahiro Tanaka are no strangers to the injured list, after all.

My guess — and this is just a guess — is the Yankees will let Gonzalez go. German looks good, they’re obviously comfortable with Jonathan Loaisiga as depth, and Gonzalez is pretty pricey. I suppose they could put him in long relief to avoid the starts bonuses, but I dunno. I guess we’ll see.

Feinsand says Gonzalez has fired Scott Boras, indicating he isn’t happy with how the offseason played out. Plenty of teams could use another starter, though that was true in March as well, and Gio said the Yankees were the only team to approach him. He only needs one team to have interest now though.

Update: Yankees sign Logan Morrison to minor league deal

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(Presswire)

4:16pm ET: The Yankees have officially announced the Morrison signing. What does Sanchez think about it? “That was two years ago. … We welcome him here,” he told James Wagner. So there you go.

12:30pm ET: According to Chris Cotillo, the Yankees have signed veteran first baseman Logan Morrison to a minor league contract. He’ll head to Extended Spring Training to get at-bats before joining Triple-A Scranton. Joel Sherman says Morrison gets a $1M base salary at the MLB level and a July 1st opt-out.

Morrison, 31, struggled with the Twins last year, hitting .186/.276/.368 (74 wRC+) with 15 home runs in 95 games before having season-ending hip surgery. Two years ago he authored a .246/.353/.516 (130 wRC+) line with 38 homers for the Rays. I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for that guy to come back.

You may recall Morrison ripped MLB for inviting Gary Sanchez to the Home Run Derby two years ago, saying he should’ve been there instead. A refresher, via Bryan Hoch:

“Gary shouldn’t be there,” Morrison said. “Gary’s a great player, but he shouldn’t be in the Home Run Derby. I remember when I had 14 home runs. That was a month and a half ago.”

On the day of Morrison’s comments, he had 24 home runs and Sanchez had 13. Gary has out-homered Morrison 44 to 29 since that day while playing roughly the same amount of games (169 to 164) and being a catcher. “(Yankee fans) didn’t like the Gary Sanchez thing with the Home Run Derby but you can’t fix stupid, you know?” Morrison later said to Zach Miller.

A N Y W A Y, the Morrison signing is an obvious move to replenish depth following Greg Bird’s latest injury. The only first base option in Triple-A is Ryan McBroom, who the RailRiders need to use in the outfield occasionally. The Yankees needed a Triple-A first baseman and they signed a Triple-A first baseman who maybe could sock some dingers with a healthy hip. We’ll see.

Yankees send Thairo Estrada to Triple-A, call up Gio Urshela

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Urshela. (Presswire)

The Yankees have changed up their infield. Gio Urshela has been called up and Thairo Estrada has been sent down to Triple-A Scranton, the Yankees announced. Didi Gregorius was transferred to the 60-day injured list to clear a 40-man spot for Urshela. I thought this would be the move Thursday when Troy Tulowitzki got hurt. Close enough.

It seems the Yankees called up Estrada, who was already on the 40-man roster, following the Tulowitzki injury on Wednesday because it was the easiest move. That got them through Thursday, then the Yankees used yesterday’s off-day to reevaluate things and make a more long-term decision, which led to them summoning Urshela.

Estrada, 23, did not play Thursday and he really needs regular at-bats after missing most of last year to various injuries. Sitting on the big league bench and playing maybe twice a week isn’t what he needs at this point. Estrada has to play and play every single day. Triple-A Scranton is the best place for that.

The 27-year-old Urshela is a career .225/.274/.315 (57 wRC+) hitter in 499 big league plate appearances — he is 4-for-9 and two doubles in two Triple-A this year — but he’s an excellent third base defender who can play shortstop as well. The Yankees can sit him for days at a time and not worry about it.

My guess is Urshela and Tyler Wade will platoon for the time being. Urshela will play third base against lefties and Wade will play second base against righties, with DJ LeMahieu moving between second and third as necessary. That seems like the best way to maximize the personnel on the roster.

Urshela is out of minor league options, and because he is relatively young and can play the left side of the infield well, he’s a candidate to be lost on waivers when the time comes. I wonder if that means Wade is going to Triple-A when Tulowitzki returns? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Let’s see Tulowitzki get healthy first.

Gregorius joins Ben Heller and Jordan Montgomery on the 60-day injured list. All three are rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. Jacoby Ellsbury is likely a 60-day injured list candidate at this point, so he’ll be the next move when a 40-man spot is needed. Miguel Andujar would be a 60-day injured list candidate should he need season-ending shoulder surgery.

Yankees sign Cliff Pennington to minor league contract

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(Presswire)

The Yankees signed veteran infielder Cliff Pennington to a minor league contract, the team announced this afternoon. He’s heading to Triple-A Scranton. Clearly, this is a move to replenish depth after Miguel Andujar and Troy Tulowitzki joined Didi Gregorius on the injured list.

Pennington, 34, went 8-for-27 (.296) with the Athletics in Spring Training, and he did travel with the team to Tokyo for the Japan Series last month. He was released after failing to make their Opening Day roster though. Pennington played a handful of games with the Reds last season and spent most of the summer in Triple-A, where he hit .211/.311/.289 (64 wRC+) in 287 plate appearances.

A career .242/.309/.339 (79 wRC+) hitter in over 3,000 big league plate appearances, Pennington has always been a glove-first utility type. Given all the injuries, he very well might be the next player call-up should the Yankees lose another infielder to the injured list. Let’s all hope that doesn’t happen.