Yankees Acquire Rougned Odor From Rangers
Image credit: Rougned Odor (Getty)
After the Rangers designated Rougned Odor for assignment, the Yankees put in a claim on the powerful middle infielder and swung a trade to bring him into the organization. Odor’s future in Texas once seemed so bright that the Rangers signed him to a six-year contract worth nearly $50 million which runs through the 2022 season.
Because they will pick up most of that money, the Rangers pried a pair of prospects from New York in lower-level outfielders Antonio Cabello and Josh Stowers. The former was signed with part of the money the Yankees had allotted for Shohei Ohtani in the winter of 2017 and currently ranks as the organization’s No. 20 prospect.
The latter was acquired from the Mariners as part of a series of trades that sent righthander Sonny Gray to the Reds. The Yankees received infielder Shed Long in that deal, then quickly flipped him to the Mariners for Stowers.
Neither player has seen time above Low-A, though Stowers was part of the Yankees’ contingent in the Arizona Fall League in 2019.
Rougned Odor, 2B
Age: 27
Once ranked as high as No. 42 on BA’s Top 100 Prospects list, Odor showed undeniable power, swatting 30 home runs in a season three times (2016, 2017, 2019) albeit with a ton of swing and miss mixed in along the way. His 178 strikeouts in 2019 were the most in the American League. He’s never been much more than a fringe-average defender at second base, either, but should be able to fill in capably at the position when one of the regulars needs a day off. He also adds a bit of lefthanded power to a roster without much from any of its regulars. Jay Bruce and Brett Gardner are the only lefthanders on the team’s active roster, aside from the switch-hitting Aaron Hicks.
Antonio Cabello, OF
Age: 20
Once Shohei Ohtani chose the Angels, the Yankees pivoted and used the rest of their pool money to sign Cabello and fellow outfielder Raimfer Salinas. A combination of injuries and the lack of a 2020 season has kept Cabello from advancing any further in the system than Rookie-level Pulaski in the Appalachian League, where Cabello ranked as the No. 5 prospect after the 2019 season. The Yankees worked with Cabello to improve his path to the ball in order to keep his barrel in the zone for a longer period of time, which they hoped would increase the consistency of making hard contact. He’s a thicker-bodied player at a listed 5-foot-11 and 216 pounds yet has shown the athleticism to handle center field at times.
Josh Stowers, OF
Age: 24
After moving to the Yankees organization in 2019, Stowers struggled during the regular season and then again in the Arizona Fall League. Chief among Stowers’ goals heading into the season before it was canceled was learning to better recognize offspeed pitches. He’s got the plus speed to handle center field, but needed to work on getting better jumps and taking better routes to the ball. Stowers showed fringe-average power the last time scouts saw him, so he’ll likely need to stick in center field to have the most value. He also showed a fringe-average arm, making left field the most likely landing spot if he had to move to a corner.
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