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Yankees' Sudden Trade Already Looking Like a Massive Steal
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- Yankees' Sudden Trade Already Looking Like a Massive Steal
The New York Yankees completed a trade on Sunday, sending infielder Jorbit Vivas to the Washington Nationals in exchange for pitching prospect Sean Paul Linan.
Linan was the 27th-ranked prospect in the Nationals' system, but he moved up to No. 23 for the Yankees, who don't have a ton of depth in their organization.
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Adding Linan, though, could prove significant.
The 21-year-old began his career in the Los Angeles Dodgers ' system back in 2022 but was traded to Washington midway through 2025 in a deal that sent outfielder Eric Call to the Dodgers.
Linan was dominant in 19 minor-league appearances and 15 starts last season, logging a 3.03 ERA while allowing just 54 hits and racking up 106 strikeouts over 77.1 innings of work.
That marked the best year of Linan's minor-league career, but he also owns a lifetime 3.62 ERA, 11.6 K/9 and 3.32 K/BB.
The Colombian native has been impressive throughout his tenure in the minors and also boasts a tremendous changeup, which is a big reason why he has been able to establish himself as a strikeout artist.
Sean Paul Linan. Credit: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images.
Considering that Vivas looked lost in his big-league debut last season and appeared to be going nowhere fast in the Bronx, this trade was quite the steal for New York.
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Interestingly enough, Linan began as a relief pitcher for the Dodgers, but has slowly been transitioning into a starter's role.
It definitely paid dividends in 2025, when Linan started the most games of his career and flashed incredible potential.
We also know how the Yanks are when it comes to pitching. They are terrific at identifying strong pitching talent, so there is every reason to believe that they may have landed a future stud — or at least a consistent producer — in this deal.
Linan did most of his damage at Single-A last year. He was briefly promoted to Triple-A at the end of the campaign, so it will be interesting to see where he fits into the Yankees' plans this coming season.
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Will New York continue working with the right-hander as a starter? Will it move him to the bullpen? And will the Yanks fast-track Linan's path to the majors?
Regardless of the strategy, the Yankees traded an infielder they weren't even going to use for an arm who could very well become a critical piece for them in the future.
It seems safe to say that this was a great deal for the Bronx Bombers.
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