Yankees trade once-promising Estevan Florial to Guardians for Cody Morris
The Yankees are moving on from Estevan Florial.
The team announced they traded the once-promising outfield prospect to the Guardians for pitcher Cody Morris.
Morris, 27, has made 13 appearances (five starts) for Cleveland over the past two seasons.
The right-hander is 1-2 with a 3.41 ERA and 32 strikeouts across 31 ⅔ innings.
The Yankees have had high hopes for the 26-year-old Florial, who has shown potential in the minor leagues that has not translated when given chances in The Bronx.
Florial hit .209 with one home run in 115 at-bats across four seasons for the Yankees.
path to the big leagues was sufficiently blocked this season with the Yankees acquiring Juan Soto and Alex Verdugo, and Jasson Dominguez slated to return from an elbow injury early in the season.
Yankees trade former top-100 prospect Estevan Florial to Guardians for right-hander
The Yankees have been one of baseball’s busiest teams this winter
The Cleveland Guardians obtained outfielder Estevan Florial from the New York Yankees on Tuesday in exchange for right-hander Cody Morris. Both teams announced the trade.
Florial, 26, will enter the spring without minor-league options — in other words, the Guardians cannot demote him without first exposing him to waivers. He’s a former top-100 prospect with good power and speed whose stock has slipped because of hit-tool concerns. Florial has struck out more than 30% of the time during various big-league stints. Last season, he batted .284/.380/.565 in 101 games at the Triple-A level, as opposed to just .230/.324/.311 in 19 MLB contests.
Whereas the Yankees no longer had an apparent spot for Florial on their roster — not following an offseason that has seen them obtain Juan Soto, Alex Verdugo, and Trent Grisham — he should compete for a spot on the Guardians’ Opening Day roster. As it stands, Cleveland’s outfield depth chart includes Steven Kwan, Myles Straw, Ramón Laureano, and Will Brennan. Cleveland’s crop of outfielders ranked last in the majors in OPS last season, posting a .654 mark that was 18 points below the next worst
