When Andrew McCutchen was traded to the Giants this winter after his long tenure with the PIttsburgh Pirates, the hope for McCutchen was that he was going to be returning to the postseason.
He almost assuredly will be, but it won't be with the Giants. According to ESPN's Buster Olney, San Francisco traded McCutchen to the Yankees late Thursday night, just two days before the official trade deadline ends. In return, the Yankees will send the Giants two minor league players.
There's a lot to be made of this trade, but let's start with what McCutchen brings the Yankees. It hasn't been a fantastic season for the 2013 MVP, but he does have an OPS-plus on the year of 110 thanks to a .255/.357/.415 line with 15 homers and 13 steals in his 130 games with the Giants. He's been particularly effective against left-handed pitching, with an .812 OPS when he faces off against southpaws. While the hits haven't dropped for the 2013 MVP, he has drawn 73 walks, so the approach has been sound for the 31-year-old all season.
Let's also keep in mind that McCutchen is going to be hitting in a much friendlier ball park for the remainder of the season. The ball jumps out to right field in New York, and we know that he's willing to go the other way. Don't expect massive power totals as he adjusts to a new league, but assuming he gets regular playing time, he should see an increase in his slugging percentage while providing a homer or five in the friendly confines.
McCutchen should help the Yankees, and if you play in an AL-Only league, he's worth a pickup. The question now is: What does this move mean for the future of Aaron Judge? There's no question that New York's search for outfielders isn't as public the superstar slugger was healthy. Is it possible that this is more than just insurance? Possibly, but the assumption is that the trade cost was low for New York, and the Yankees might have wanted to add a lefty-killer like McCutchen, anyway. Here's hoping we get a chance to see both of them in the lineup sooner than later.
Stanton fifth quickest to 300 homers
The Yankees outfield news is not done, as the biggest -- literally and figuratively -- acquisition of the 2018 offseason made history on Thursday night. Giancarlo Stanton took Francisco Liriano deep in the second inning, and it gave him 33 homers on the year, and it was the 300th homer of his career.
Stanton is the fifth-quickest player to 300 homers, behind only Ralph Kiner, Ryan Howard, Juan Gonzalez and Alex Rodriguez. He's also the ninth-youngest player to reach the mark at 28-years, 295 days. It's impressive company -- although the reminder of what Howard and Gonzalez were at one point is a bit of a nostalgic kick in the shins.
As good as Stanton has been, one can't help but think how much better things can be. His 2018 season line of .277/.351/.525 is excellent, but it's even better when you consider that Stanton started off the year so terribly, fluttering at breaking-ball pitches and falling victim to the BABIP (batting average balls in play) monster when he did make hard contact. He's going to be spending the majority of his career playing his home games in one of the best homer parks in baseball, and he's strong enough to take the ball out of any part of any park. He's well on his way to Cooperstown at this point, and going on a bit of a ledge, it wouldn't shock me if someday Stanton challenged for the single-season homer record.
 |
| Gant |
Gant helps with bat, on mound in win over Pirates
The Cardinals have been one of the best teams in baseball in the second-half of the 2018 season, and one of the reasons they've been so good is their starters. An underrated part of that staff is John Gant, and he was excellent on Thursday against the Pirates. He threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings in the 5-0 win, and he also added his second homer of the season in the victory.
Acquired in the deal that sent Jaime Garcia to Atlanta in 2017, Gant has pitched well all year for the Cardinals with a 3.34 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in his 91 2/3 innings, but he's been particularly good in his last five starts. The 26-year-old right-hander has given up no more than a run in four of those starts, and the exception to that number was a two-run effort. He's never going to be an elite strikeout-artist, but he limits the amount of hard contact, and in general, he doesn't beat himself by putting runners on via walk.
If Gant is still available in your re-draft league -- or especially if he's available in dynasty formats -- he's well worth a roster add at this point in the year. Even if he doesn't pile up the strikeouts, the low WHIP and ability to keep the ball in the ballpark make him a solid fantasy starter, one that gets overlooked too often.
American League Quick Hits: Angels' manager Mike Scioscia announced Thursday that Shohei Ohtani (elbow) will return to the rotation on Sunday against the Astros in Houston ... Wade LeBlanc scattered three hits over seven shutout innings in a 7-1 win over the Athletics on Thursday ... Jean Segura was a late scratch from the Mariners' starting lineup on Thursday. Segura left Wednesday's game against the Padres after fouling a ball off of his left foot ... White Sox' manager Rick Renteria said Thursday that 1B Jose Abreu (abdomen) is still at least a week away from resuming baseball activities ...Twins OF Eddie Rosario exited Thursday's game against the Indians with a left quad strain. Rosario was 1-for-2 with an infield single before getting replaced in left field by Robbie Grossman in the bottom of the fifth inning ... RHP Matt Shoemaker (forearm) is expected to rejoin the Angels' rotation on Monday ... Yankees manager Aaron Boone said C Gary Sanchez (groin) would come off the disabled list for Saturday's game ... Twins acquired catcher Chris Gimenez and a PTBN or cash from the Cubs for catcher Bobby Wilson ... Tigers placed SS Jose Iglesias on the 10-day disabled list with a lower abdominal strain ... According to Jon Heyman of Fancred Sports, the agents for White Sox top prospect Eloy Jimenez are considering filing a grievance over his lack of a promotion to the majors ... Mariners acquired INF/OF Kristopher Negron from the Diamondbacks for cash considerations ... Yankees OF Clint Frazier (concussion) is beginning a minor league rehab assignment Thursday at High-A Tampa.
No comments:
Post a Comment