Yankees Acquire Keynan Middleton From White Sox For Juan Carela

Image credit: Keynan Middleton (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

In the final minutes of the trade deadline, the Yankees struck a deal with the White Sox to acquire reliever Keynan Middleton, who will be a free agent after the season.

In return, the White Sox received righthander Juan Carela, who was pitching in the rotation for High-A Hudson Valley.

YANKEES ACQUIRE

Keynan Middleton, RHP
Age: 29

The righthanded Middleton was selected by the Angels out of Lane Community College in Eugene, Ore., in the third round of the 2013 draft. He made his debut in 2017 and spent four seasons with the Angels before moving from the Mariners to the Diamondbacks to the White Sox over the past three seasons. Middleton, who is 2-2, 3.96 this year in 39 games, works with a three-pitch mix which is fronted by a mid-90s fastball and backed by a slider and changeup which each sit in the mid 80s. He has 47 strikeouts in 36.1 innings.

WHITE SOX ACQUIRE

Juan Carela, RHP
Age: 21
Carela was signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2018 and made his debut the following season before the pandemic interrupted his career path. When the minor leagues resumed in 2021, Carela began in the Florida Complex League but got his first taste of full-season ball at the end of the year. He’s spent the entirety of his 2023 season at High-A Hudson Valley, where he has struck out 109 hitters in 83.1 innings. The righthander works with four- and two-seam fastballs in the 91-93 mph range and backs them with a cutter and slider that are fringy offerings. The Yankees had Carela change the grip on his slider in advance of the 2022 season to make its break shorter and tighter. He also throws a mid-80s changeup which is inconsistent but shows heavy drop at its best.