The Yankees are acquiring left-hander Caleb Ferguson from the Dodgers, says Jon Heyman of The New York Post. The Dodgers will be receiving two prospects in return, according to Joel Sherman of The New York Post. Heyman adds that lefty Matt Gage, who was just claimed by the Yankees last week, is headed to the Dodgers in the transaction. Sherman says that one of the prospects is far from the majors, while the other is a Quad-A type. Assuming Gage is the latter, there is one candidate remaining to be disclosed.
Ferguson, 27 years old, will be joining a new franchise for the first time in his career. He was drafted by the Dodgers in 2014 and has been with them ever since. He made his debut in 2018, starting his first three big league appearances before being shifted to a relief role. Apart from some infrequent starts as an opener, he’s been stuck in the bullpen ever since.
The results have been rather solid, with Ferguson making 96 appearances from 2018 to 2020, hurling 112 1/3 innings while allowing 3.93 earned runs per nine. He struck out 29.1% of hitters faced in that period, handed out walks at an 8.7% pace, and kept 44% of batted balls on the ground. Unfortunately, he had Tommy John surgery in September of 2020, wiping out the balance of that season and prohibiting him from pitching at all in 2021.
He has subsequently returned to the mound and has generated pretty identical statistics to before his injury layoff. In 126 appearances across 2022 and 2023, he has thrown 113 2/3 innings with a 2.85 ERA. He struck out 27.5% of opponents in that period, walking 8.8% of them and getting grounders at a 48% clip. Those successes have come with Ferguson transitioning to higher leverage outings, as he earned seven holds in 2022 and 17 last year.
He is presently in his final season under club control, scheduled for free agency following the 2019 season, in which he’ll collect a salary of $2.4 million. This is the second left-handed reliever who has gone from the Dodgers to the Yankees this offseason, with Victor González having been moved to the Bronx in December.
The Yankees have employed Caleb Ferguson as their primary lefty out of the bullpen in recent years, but he became a free agent this summer and signed with the Padres last week. They currently have Ferguson and González as their top southpaw relievers, alongside righties Clay Holmes, Jonathan Loáisiga and Tommy Kahnle
Gage, 31 next week, will provide the Dodgers with another lefty to replace Ferguson, but one with a more limited track record. Gage has made 16 big league appearances over the previous two years, suiting up for the Astros and Blue Jays, with a 1.83 ERA in a limited sample of 19 2/3 innings. He spent most of last year’s with Houston’s Triple-A team, hurling 37 1/3 innings at that level with a 4.58 ERA, 23.4% strikeout rate, 12% walk rate, and 41.5% ground ball rate.
For now, it looks like the trade will be 40-man neutral. By trading Gage to the Dodgers, the Yanks cleared up a 40-man spot for Ferguson. The Dodgers are also reportedly signing Ryan Brasier, so they will still need to free up space for him, but they might potentially do so by designating Gage or some other player for assignment.
For the Yanks, they enhance their bullpen for the 2024 season while giving up a bit of potential value in the prospect. The Dodgers, in the meantime, were going to be facing a roster pinch with the Brasier deal and have utilized one year of Ferguson’s services to offer them an extra prospect and some more roster flexibility. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see them chase a different lefty at this point, given they are now down to Alex Vesia, Ryan Yarbrough and Gage as their southpaw relievers
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