The Zach Britton trade may be a rare instance of both teams being perfectly content. Baltimore got three good prospects, including a former top-five pick. The Yankees, meanwhile, gave up three players who, without being added to the roster, would have been susceptible to the Rule 5 draft.
Right-hander Dillon Tate — the fourth-overall pick in 2015 — is the centerpiece of the deal for the Orioles. At Double-A Trenton this season, Tate posted a 3.38 ERA and struck out 8.17 per nine innings while boasting a three-pitch mix including a mid-90s fastball.
“All three pitches he has, they’re all above average,” said Michael Ryan, the Pirates’ Double-A Altoona Curve manager. “You sit in the opposing dugout and you just admire the stuff.”
Still, the Yankees may have been hard-pressed to protect Tate in the Rule 5 draft — and if selected, the Yankees could have lost him for nothing. At 6-foot-2, Tate could struggle to become a long-term starter, and he struggled within the Rangers’ system before being traded. The depth of the Yankees’ farm system is such that other pitchers might take priority — and other teams might have been eager to snatch up Tate.
“You look at all the intangibles, he just looks the part,” Ryan said. “The stuff is great. Absolutely a team would take a chance on him.”
As for the other two players going to the Orioles, right-hander Cody Carroll has the same fastball-slider-changeup mix out of the bullpen. In Triple-A Scranton, Carroll had a 2.38 ERA in just over 40 innings. Alhough a lack of home runs allowed will make statheads’ eyebrows raise, Carroll’s xFIP — which normalizes home run rate and spits out an ERA based on strikeouts and walks — was 3.31 in Scranton.
Josh Rogers, the lone lefty the Yankees gave up, is another starter. Rogers is closer to the big leagues than Tate is — he spent this season in Scranton — but his numbers are worse. Rogers is striking out just under seven per nine innings with a 3.95 ERA. His fastball is in the low-90s. It’s clear Rogers’ command is his calling card.
The 24-year-old was an 11th-round pick in 2015 and had risen steadily through the system. This was his first year at Triple-A, after posting a 3.24 ERA between Single-A and Double-A last year.
Like Tate, it’s easy to see Carroll and Rogers being lost in the Rule 5 draft had they stayed with the Yankees. Brian Cashman gave up talent, but it was talent that may have been gone anyway.
