Prior to Friday's trade deadline, the New York Yankees acquired left-hander Andrew Heaney from the Los Angeles Angels, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Heaney, 30, has made 18 starts for the Angels this season, and over that span he's put up an ERA of 5.27. However, he's looked sharper in recent outings, and his strong K/BB ratio of 3.65 suggests he's been unlucky thus far.
For his career, Heaney owns an ERA+ of 94 across parts of eight major-league seasons. He's owed the balance of a $6.75 million salary for 2021, and he's eligible for free agency this coming offseason.
Heaney will provide some needed rotation depth for the Yankees. While the assumption is that the Yanks will eventually get Corey Kluber (rotator cuff) and Luis Severino (Tommy John surgery) back from injury, they need a bridge at the back end right now. The Yankees are betting that Heaney can be that.
The Heaney addition caps an active deadline for the Yankees -- one that most notably saw them fortify the lineup with trades for lefty sluggers Joey Gallo and Anthony Rizzo. The Yankees enter play Friday in third place in the AL East and trailing the Red Sox by 8 1/2 games. A more realistic target may be the second wild card spot in the AL. Right now, the Yankees trail the A's on that front by 3 1/2 games.
