Yankees Made Out Like Bandits in Edwin Encarnación Trade With Mariners
By Zack Jiang
The Yankees got a lot scarier after acquiring Edwin Encarnación from the Mariners. The details of the trade have recently been reported by Bob Nightengale. So far, it doesn't seem like the Yanks had to give up much.
In order to acquire the American League's home run leader, New York has reportedly only given up one young prospect in Juan Then.
The #Mariners are not receiving any other prospects besides Juan Then, #Yankees say
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) June 16, 2019
Then is a 19-year-old pitching prospect who has played in the minors for two seasons. The Mariners have had experience with Then as he played for the DSL Mariners in 2017 and posted 2.64 ERA in 13 games. Last summer, he posted a 2.70 ERA in 11 games for the Yankees East.
While Then is a solid prospect, the Yankees are getting a powerful bat with Encarnación. The Bombers are trading some future talent for the best chance to compete now.
What's more, is the Yankees will only have to pay $10 million this season, roughly half of Encarnación's contract. They will also have to pay his $5 million option for the 2020 season.
The #Yankees are paying close to $10 million of Edwin Encarnacion’s remaining $20 million contract and $5 million option for 2020, #Mariners say
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) June 16, 2019
The Yankees are currently seventh in the league in home runs but should jump near the top three once the acquisition of Encarnación is finalized. On top of that, they are getting two powerful batters back soon in Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. If the rest of the league wasn't already paying attention to the Yanks, the sure are now.
The Yankees got a complete steal in this trade, giving away an 18-year-old pitching prospect, who was already with the Mariners in the past, in order to land one of the league's most feared sluggers.