The New York Yankees continue to bolster their pitching staff, as Jason Mackey reports that the Bombers have acquired righthander Jameson Taillon from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Taillon joins Gerrit Cole and Corey Kluber as the only guarantees in the starting rotation for the time being. Like Kluber, Taillon is a high-risk move due to his injury woes, but presents the team with a ton of upside.
Since his 2016 debut, Taillon has recorded a 3.67 ERA in 466 innings. However, injuries have kept him from consistent production. He had his second Tommy John surgery in 2019, and hasn’t pitched in a game since May 1st, 2019.
In his last full season, 2018, Taillon was extremely effective for the Pirates. He recorded a 3.20 ERA across 32 starts, with a 122 ERA+. His Baseball Savant profile from that season is impressive, as well.
New Year, New Taillon
In his recovery, Taillon has completely overhauled his arm action, as well. Take a look at his windup from this 2018 video:
Now take a look at his current windup, from a January 15th tweet:
As you can see, his arm path is much more direct and efficient. As long as Taillon can remain healthy, he should be a great weapon for the Yankees.
The Return
According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Yankees have sent four prospects to Pittsburgh in the deal. They are:
- RHP Miguel Yajure
- RHP Roansy Contreras
- SS Maikol Escotto
- OF Canaan Smith
For the Bronx Bombers, this is a great deal. Many expected the team to deal catching prospect Anthony Siegler, or a pitcher such as Albert Abreu or Alexander Vizcaino. While the team did part with three of their top 30 prospects (MLB.com ranks Yajure #15, Contreras #19, and Smith #21), they still managed to keep all of their highest-end youngsters.
On the Pirates’ side, their rebuild is fully underway. Pittsburgh has now acquired 14 prospects in the span of roughly one month. The other 10 prospects were acquired in trades that saw Josh Bell and Joe Musgrove leave the Steel City.
High Risk, High Reward
Taillon, again, is a guy with injury concerns. However, his upside is unquestionable. In 2010, Taillon was the second pick in the draft, sandwiched between Bryce Harper and Manny Machado (you’ve probably heard of those guys).
If Taillon can remain healthy, the Yankees will look back on this trade very fondly.