The New York Yankees traded former starting pitcher Sonny Gray to the Cincinnati Reds in return for a second-base prospect and a high draft pick, but who is the player and what does he offer to a youthful team?
Shed Long, the piece that will come over in the Gray trade, is a legitimate prospect that could be of use down the line for a defensively unstable infield.
Long is 23-years-old who has demonstrated his talents at the plate in the minors so far, slashing .261/.353/.412 (120 wRC+) last season in Double-A ball. Receiving a player of this potential quality is impressive given what Gray has offered the Yanks the past 11/2 years. He finished 2018 with an ERA of 4.90, allowing 14 homers and 138 hits in 130 innings, averaging over one-hit per inning. A steep drop-off from what a dominant start to his career with the Oakland Athletics – 2.73 ERA on 2015.
Gray is a known fly-ball pitcher that struggles in smaller stadiums, which is likely why his talents didn’t translate to the Bronx.
While Long has displayed enough quality to offer reason for optimism, he has struggled with strikeouts (23.6% in 2018) and his defensive abilities don’t make him a sure-fire second-baseman. It’s possible the Yankees try to move him to an outfield position and utilize his skills in a more reserved way.
Having capable depth is always a positive, especially with a player like Gleyber Torres who’s still so young and featuring at second-base. If he were to suffer an injury or need time off, Long could fill his role as a stop-gap, offering him valuable experience at the professional stage.
It seems as if Long still requires a solid amount of development before he cn be a regular in the MLB, but he’s certainly trending in the right direction.
This post was published on 2019-01-22 07:00