The New York Yankees may have one justifiable reason to trade their No. 2 Prospect Spencer Jones this season, who is a gem in the franchise’s farming system.
The way New York Post reporter Jon Heyman sees it, Jones should be untouchable unless the Yankees can luck up by trading him for Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal ahead of the July 30 MLB trade deadline:
“In what would be a major deadline coup, if the Yankees can land Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal of the Tigers for a package including Jones, go for it,” Heyman wrote.
“The Yankees are more focused on the bullpen, and that’s no surprise. But if they can land Skubal, no prospect should be untouchable. He’s that good.”
The Yankees’ pitching staff could see a major boost with Tarik Skubal addition
Skubal is leading the entire Major Leagues with a squeaky clean 2.41 ERA. He also outpaces all pitchers in the American League with a .769 winning percentage. The 27-year-old ranks in the 88th percentile or better in a litany of pitching metrics on the season. They include his 32.6 percent whiff percentage and his 30.8 percent strikeout rate, which both rank in the 92nd percentile as well as his 4.6 percent walk rate which places him in the 93rd percentile, and his 32.1 percent hard-hit percentage, which falls in the 88th percentile.
The AL Cy Young award candidate would pair well next to the reigning award winner Gerrit Cole in the Yankees’ lineup. New York already has a stacked pitching staff as is, which has helped them achieve their 58-40 record and third place standing in the AL.
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Yankees are unlikely to part ways with Jones
However, the Yankees greatly value Jones and have hung on to him through thick and thin. If Juan Soto could not yield a return of Jones to the San Diego Padres in 2023, Skubal may fall in similar territory, which speaks volume considering the impact that the Dominican superstar outfielder has had on the Yankees this year.
Jones currently has 10 home runs, 46 RBI, and 18 stolen bases in 295 at-bats for Triple-A Somerset thus far. While he’s hitting an underwhelming .237 at the plate, he still sports a strong .720 OPS and has a ceiling comparable to Aaron Judge that the Yankees are banking on him reaching once he likely gets called up in 2025.
The Yankees have 13 days until the trade deadline to pull off a groundbreaking move if that’s the route that management decides to take. Jones will likely remain in their system as the proposed deal has no legs under it at the moment, but Skubal would give the Yankees a second surefire ace that would bolster their 2024 World Series odds even more.
