Yanks ship Warren to Mariners, then get Lynn from Twins
NEW YORK » The Yankees made another move to reshape their pitching staff, trading right-hander Adam Warren to the Seattle Mariners and then acquiring right-hander Lance Lynn from the Minnesota Twins.
The Yankees gave up first baseman/outfielder Tyler Austin and right-handed pitching prospect Luis Rijo for Lynn.
Minnesota will send $2 million to the Yankees as part of Monday’s deal to cover half of the $4 million remaining in Lynn’s $12 million salary.
In exchange for Warren, the Yankees received $1.25 million in international signing bonus pool allotment.
The 31-year-old Lynn was 7-8 with a 5.10 ERA in 20 starts for the Twins, walking 62 and striking out 100 in 102 1/3 innings. He is likely to become a long reliever with the Yankees to replace Warren.
Lynn also joins Luis Cessa as insurance for a starting rotation that includes Luis Severino, Masahiro Tanaka, CC Sabathia, Sonny Gray and newly acquired J.A. Happ.
Austin, 26, made his major league debut against Tampa Bay in August 2016, combining with Aaron Judge to become the first teammates to homer in their first major league atbats in the same game.
But Austin never became a regular with the Yankees. He hit .223 with eight homers and 23 RBIs in 121 atbats for New York this year and .247 with five homers and 11 RBIs in 97 at-bats with Triple-A Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre
The 19-year-old Rijo is 4-1 with a 2.77 ERA in five starts and two relief appearances this year for Class A Tampa and Staten Island, and rookie level Pulaski.
Ahead of Tuesday’s deadline for trades without waivers, the Yankees recently acquired reliever Zach Britton from Baltimore and Happ from Toronto, and dealt left-hander Chasen Shreve and right-hander Giovanny Gallegos to St. Louis.
New York has raised its bonus pool to $8,752,600 from an original $5,002,600 and lowered its 40-man roster to 38 — plus Jacoby Ellsbury and Ben Heller on the 60-day disabled list.
The 30-year-old Warren, often used as a long reliever, was 0-1 with a 2.70 ERA in 24 appearances this season, interrupted by a stint on the disabled list from April 21 through June 3 caused by a strained back. He has a $3,315,000 salary and is eligible for free agency after the World Series.
Warren was traded to the Cubs in December 2015 in the deal that brought second baseman Starlin Castro to New York, then reacquired the following July along with second baseman Gleyber Torres and outfielders Billy McKinney and Rashad Crawford in the deal that sent closer Aroldis Chapman to Chicago.
After helping the Cubs win their first World Series since 1908, Chapman re-signed with the Yankees.