8:02 pm | July 24, 2018 | Go to Source | Author:
The New York Yankees have acquired former All-Star reliever Zach Britton from the Baltimore Orioles for three minor league pitchers in a trade announced Tuesday night.
The deal sends right-handed starter Dillon Tate, left-handed starter Josh Rogers and righty reliever Cody Carroll to Baltimore.
Britton, 30, has amassed 139 saves for the Orioles since 2013. He was the top bullpen arm available on the market after Kelvin Herrera, Brad Hand and Jeurys Familia changed teams via trades since mid-June.
The Astros, Red Sox and Cubs were among several other clubs that had been pursuing Britton, who will take a streak of eight consecutive scoreless appearances with him to the Yankees. Britton ruptured his right Achilles during an offseason workout session and didn’t make his 2018 debut until June 12.
Britton joins Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances and David Robertson as part of a New York bullpen that leads the major leagues with a 2.75 ERA and 448 strikeouts. Britton is the team’s third reliever with 100 or more career saves, joining Chapman and Robertson.
Betances said after Tuesday’s 4-0 win over Tampa Bay that adding Britton would be huge for the Yankees as it would allow manager Aaron Boone to further distribute the workload among the back end of the bullpen.
“Adding a guy like that, it’s just pieces you can kinda play with,” Betances said before the trade was officially announced. “You don’t have to go out there and pitch three days in a row, which — I haven’t done that all year; most of us haven’t really done that — so I think adding a guy like that even gives us more help. And we’ll keep feeding off that energy back down there in the bullpen.”
The deal also gives the Yankees a nod over AL rivals Boston and Houston, both of whom reportedly were after the lefty.
“Those are teams that are top teams in the league,” Betances said. “And adding a guy like Britton is powerful to any bullpen, so obviously getting him on our side … it’s huge for us.”
The Orioles, a major league-worst 29-73, have embarked on a full-scale rebuild. They traded star shortstop Manny Machado to the Los Angeles Dodgers last week for five minor leaguers, and they are weighing offers for Jonathan Schoop, Kevin Gausman, Adam Jones, Brad Brach and other players in advance of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.
Tate is the prime piece going back to Baltimore.
The Rangers selected Tate with the fourth overall pick in the 2015 draft, then traded him a year later to New York for a package highlighted by Carlos Beltran. A 24-year-old right-hander, the UC-Santa Barbara product is 5-2 with a 3.38 ERA in 15 starts with Double-A Trenton this year. Prior to the season, ESPN’s Keith Law ranked Tate as the eighth-best prospect in the Yankees’ system.
Carroll and Rogers also were in the 2015 draft class.
Carroll, taken by the Yankees in the 22nd round out of Southern Mississippi, was ranked as the team’s No. 15 prospect by MLB Pipeline entering this season. In 32 relief appearances at Triple-A Scranton, the 25-year-old righty was 3-0 with nine saves and a 2.81 ERA.
Rogers was an 11th-round pick out of Louisville. The 24-year-old southpaw was 6-8 with a 3.95 ERA in 19 starts with Scranton.
A former third-round pick of the Orioles in 2006, Britton was drafted as a starter. After moving to the bullpen at the beginning of 2014, he emerged as one of the most dominant relievers in the majors, recording a sub-2.00 ERA and 30-plus saves in three straight seasons.
In 2016, he went 47-for-47 in save opportunities, posted a 0.54 ERA and finished fourth in the American League Cy Young Award balloting. Despite Britton’s regular-season success that year, manager Buck Showalter famously decided against deploying his closer in extra innings during Baltimore’s wild-card loss to the Toronto Blue Jays, instead opting for starter Ubaldo Jimenez, who surrendered the winning runs.
Over the past two seasons, the 30-year-old southpaw has struggled to stay healthy. In 2017, Britton served two separate stints on the disabled list with a left forearm strain. This past December, he suffered the ruptured Achilles tendon.
Since making his debut on June 12, Britton has a 3.45 ERA in 16 appearances, and he has converted 4 of 5 save chances. After a rocky start, the eight-year veteran has been more effective recently, working eight consecutive scoreless outings. During that stretch, he has allowed three hits over eight innings, striking out six and walking four.
Britton is a free agent after this season. He signed a one-year, $12 million deal earlier this year, avoiding arbitration.
Information from ESPN’s Eddie Matz was used in this report.
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