Yankees Red-Hot Slugger Hints At Uncertain Future As Trade Deadline Nears
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
The New York Yankees made one major trade on Friday, but the action may not be through.
In a three-player swap with the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Yankees acquired former Colorado Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon, a strong defender who is having a rough year at the plate, according to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand. It's an exciting move, but it's safe to say fans would be disappointed if it's the Yankees' only one.
Meanwhile, with six days to go before the trade deadline, top prospects have to be at least wondering if they're the next ones to go. And outfielder Spencer Jones is directly in the spotlight.
TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 28: Spencer Jones #78 of the New York Yankees high-fives teammates during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field on February 28, 2025 in Tampa, Florida.
TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 28: Spencer Jones #78 of the New York Yankees high-fives teammates during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field on February 28, 2025 in Tampa, Florida.
NewJones is one of the most polarizing prospects we've ever seen. He led the minor leagues in strikeouts last season with Double-A, but he's been on fire all season this year, especially in his 19 games in Triple-A. He's got 13 home runs already, including three in one game on Thursday.
On Friday, ESPN's Jorge Castillo wrote a profile of Jones, in which the 24-year-old slugger spoke up about his uncertainty and desire to remain a Yankee.
"It's a lot of fun this time of year, just for baseball fans in general, right?" Jones told Castillo. "I have friends all over the country that are wanting me to go and play for their team.
"But my heart's here with this organization. I've been having a lot of fun being a Yankee so far in my career. And you take everything with a grain of salt. It's part of it, part of the season and I'm excited to see how things go moving forward."
On the season, Jones has 29 home runs and an OPS of 1.116, truly Aaron Judge-like production (in the minors, of course). But he also has 94 strikeouts, so there's still legitimate reason to worry he could be exposed by better pitching.
That's secondary to the issue at hand, though. Jones is blocked in the outfield for now by Jasson Domínguez, Cody Bellinger, Judge, and Trent Grisham. Maybe that will change by next season, but he can't help the Yankees much right this moment.
So will Jones be the headliner in a massive trade to make the Yankees true World Series contenders? The next six days will provide the answer.
More MLB: Dodgers Predicted to Cut Ties with 6-Year Veteran Hurler by Trade Deadline
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The league determined that Porter gave a bettor information about his own health status prior to that game and said that another individual — known to be an NBA bettor — placed an $80,000 bet that Porter would not hit the numbers set for him in parlays through an online sports book. That bet would have won $1.1 million. — In June 2024, San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano was banned for life by MLB for betting on baseball. MLB said Marcano placed 387 baseball bets totaling more than $150,000 with a legal sportsbook in 2022 and 2023. The 24-year-old Venezuelan with 149 games of major league experience became the first active player in a century banned for life because of gambling. Oakland Athletics pitcher Michael Kelly was also suspended for one year for betting on baseball while in the minor leagues, and three minor leaguers also were banned for one year for betting on big league games: pitchers Jay Groome of San Diego and Andrew Saalfrank of Arizona, and infielder José Rodríguez of Philadelphia. Each of those four players wagered under $1,000. Saalfrank and Rodríguez played previously in the majors. — In February 2025, umpire Pat Hoberg was fired by MLB for sharing his legal sports gambling accounts with a friend who bet on baseball games and for intentionally deleting electronic messages pertinent to the league's investigation. While MLB said the probe did not uncover evidence Hoberg personally bet on baseball or manipulated games, MLB senior vice president of on-field operations Michael Hill recommended on May 24, 2024 that Hoberg be fired. Commissioner Rob Manfred he upheld Hill's decision. Among the highest-rated umpires at judging the strike zone, Hoberg could apply for reinstatement no earlier than 2026 spring training. MLB said the friend made 141 baseball bets between April 2, 2021, and Nov. 1, 2023, totaling almost $214,000 with an overall win of nearly $35,000. That included eight bets involving games where Hoberg was working. — In June/July 2025, MLB placed Cleveland Guardians pitchers Luis Ortiz and Emmanuel Clase on paid leave as part of a sports betting investigation. The Ortiz probe is related to in-game prop bets on two pitches thrown by the right-hander that received higher activity than usual during his starts at Seattle on June 15 and against St. Louis on June 27. The gambling activity on the pitches was flagged by a betting-integrity firm and forwarded to MLB. Clase was placed on leave more than three weeks after Ortiz. It's not clear if Clase was sidelined as part of the same investigation, and he hasn't been formally accused of wrongdoing. ___ AP sports:
