The New York Yankees announced on Friday that they have acquired minor-league outfielder Cam Eden from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations. As our Mike Axisa recently detailed, teams are still allowed to make transactions following the trade deadline provided those deals fit certain parameters — such as the player being on a minor-league contract without any 40-player roster time that year.
Eden, 26, qualifies despite having made his big-league debut with the Blue Jays last September (coincidentally against the Yankees). He was outrighted to the minors once the postseason ended, and has not spent a day on the 40-player roster since then.
The Yankees presumably view Eden as a candidate to join their club once rosters expand in September. He hit .198/.299/.322 this season in 91 Triple-A games, and for his minor-league career he’s posted a .677 OPS. The Yankees’ interest in him has to do with one thing: speed. He’s been a prolific base-stealer throughout his career, having swiped 153 bases on 173 attempts (that’s an 88% success rate). In theory, at least, he could be used as a weapon during high-leverage situations into the postseason.
Given Major League Baseball’s recent rule implementations that make stealing bases easier than in the past, having a designated speedster around seems like a sound strategy.
The criteria for a player having postseason eligibility with their team stipulates that they’re in the organization at 11:59:59 p.m. ET on Aug. 31. Eden, then, will be allowed to partake in the playoffs with the Yankees should they want him on their roster.
The Yankees entered Friday with a 68-48 record that has them tied with the Baltimore Orioles atop the American League East. New York is slated to begin a weekend series with the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers.
