Yankees Acquire Heliot Ramos

Ramos was the second notable pre-deadline offensive acquisition for the Yankees, who landed first baseman Luis Garcia Jr. in a trade with the Nationals on Sunday. The Garcia addition gave the Yankees yet another left-handed hitter to join a lineup that includes Ben Rice, Trent Grisham, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Spencer Jones and Ryan McMahon. They also have switch-hitting outfielder Jasson Dominguez and lefty-batting outfielder Cody Bellinger, though the latter has been on the 10-day injured list with a hamstring strain since July 26.

With superstar Aaron Judge on the shelf as a result of a stress fracture in his rib since early June, the Yankees have been low on righty-swinging threats for two months. That is particularly true in the outfield, where Ramos will provide a credible offensive option from the right side.

Since debuting with the Giants in 2022, Ramos has slashed .257/.316/.419 (106 wRC+) in 1,601 plate appearances. Most of his success has come against lefties, whom he has teed off on for a .279/.345/.501 line. Ramos has been 33 percent better than average versus southpaws, per wRC+ The 26-year-old hasn’t been as effective while facing same-handed hurlers, though he has still hit a playable .249/.305/.388 (95 wRC+) against them.

During his best season, 2023, Ramos slashed .269/.322/.469 (120 wRC+) with 22 home runs and earned an All-Star nod. His numbers have declined since then. Ramos had a 106 wRC+ last year and has put up a league-average mark (100) in 306 trips to the plate this season. He is off to a .264/.304/.424 start with nine homers and below-average strikeout and walk rates of 26.8% and 5.2%, respectively. However, Ramos has continued to hold his own against lefties.

Ramos carries experience at all three outfield positions, but he is not an adept defender. He has accounted for minus-17 Defensive Runs Saved, Outs Above Average and Fielding Run Value in over 3,100 innings in the majors. He could nonetheless platoon in the corners with Jones and/or Dominguez for the time being. The Yankees had been platooning Jones with the righty-hitting Max Schuemann in left since Bellinger’s injury, but they optioned Schuemann to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday.

As is the case with Garcia, who is under control past this season, Ramos will not be a rental for the Yankees. He is due to reach arbitration for the first of three potential trips in the offseason, giving the Yankees control through 2029. In the meantime, Ramos is earning an ultra-affordable 810K this year.

The 63-49 Yankees are firmly in playoff position, whereas the wheels quickly came off for the Giants this year. At 47-65, they went into the deadline as obvious sellers. President of baseball operations Buster Posey also sent out second baseman Luis Arraez, lefties Robbie Ray and Erik Miller, and righty Tyler Mahle in other deals. Ramos has more team control than any of them, but Posey will get rid of him to further boost a farm system that Baseball America ranks as the 10th-best in the sport.

Both BA and MLB Pipeline rated the 6-foot-7 Lalane as the Yankees’ No. 5 prospect. Lalane was born in the Bronx, but he signed with the Yankees as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2021. The Yankees paid Lane a $350K bonus, the largest they gave to an international pitcher that year. Lalane dealt with shoulder troubles that limited him from 2024-25, but he has stayed healthy and boosted his stock this year. In a combined 78 innings between the Single-A and High-A levels, he has pitched to a 2.77 ERA with 11.31 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and a 48.6% ground-ball rate. Lalane’s arsenal include a fastball that ranges from 94 to 98 mph, a low-80s changeup and a 78 to 82 mph sweeper, per MLB Pipeline.

Kent, the son of Hall of Fame second baseman Jeff Kent, will follow in his father’s footsteps in joining the San Francisco organization. Jeff Kent thrived with the Giants from 1997-2002. The Yankees selected Kaeden Kent in the third round of the 2025 draft. The former Texas A&M Aggie slumped last season while debuting at the High-A level, where he hit just .186/.217/.265 with a pair of homers and a minuscule 2.8% walk rate over 106 plate appearances. Kent, 22, has remained at the same level this season and recorded far better results. While improving his BB rate to 8.2% (against an impressive 16.1% strikeout rate), Kent has batted .302/.359/.433 with six homers and 20 stolen bases across 354 plate appearances.

MLB Pipeline (No. 13) and BA (No. 14) slotted Kent in similar spots in their rankings of the Yankees’ prospects. Kent has primarily played shortstop this season, but he has also racked up starts at second and third base. He is likely best suited for the keystone, according to MLB Pipeline, which lauds his “high baseball IQ, quality left-handed swing and penchant for making line-drive contact.”

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the Yankees were working to acquire Ramos. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported Lalane’s inclusion in the trade. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported on the Giants getting Kent in the deal.