New York Yankees Release Disappointing Trade Acquisition

The offseason trade acquisition was let go by the Yankees after struggling to find success in both MLB and Triple-A in 2024.

May 26, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; New York Yankees relief pitcher Victor Gonzalez (47) throws a pitch during the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images / David Frerker-Imagn Images

This trade did not turn out as well as the New York Yankees had hoped. 

On Sunday, MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch reported that the Yankees released left-handed reliever Victor González, who had been pitching for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre since late June. 

The Yankees have released LHP Victor Gonzalez. He'd been with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) September 15, 2024

González, 28, was acquired alongside infield prospect Jorbit Vivas in the Dec. 11 trade that sent shortstop and 2021 first-round pick Trey Sweeney to the Los Angeles Dodgers. At the time, the Dodgers needed to free two 40-man roster spots for Shohei Ohtani and Joe Kelly. Sweeney, viewed as near-MLB ready, fit well into the Dodgers’ system, effectively replacing Vivas without needing to take up a 40-man roster spot until the following offseason. 

The Yankees took the opportunity to acquire a cost-controlled reliever to help shore up a bullpen that had many question marks, at the price of swapping two valuable infield prospects. Vivas was ranked in the Dodgers’ Top 20 by MLB Pipeline, FanGraphs, and Baseball America. Sweeney drew mixed reviews, ranking as high as third and as low as 15th in the Yankees' farm system. 

Before joining New York, González had built a solid MLB résumé. The southpaw pitched 89.1 innings for the Dodgers from 2020-23, posting a 3.22 ERA, 23.2% strikeout rate, and a 8.4% walk rate, paired with an impressive 58.1% ground-ball rate. With three years of club control remaining, he seemed to be a natural fit to replace lefty reliever Wandy Peralta, whom the Yankees lost to the San Diego Padres in free agency. 

On June 21, the Yankees designated González for assignment, a move that initially raised eyebrows. His 3.86 ERA and 1.11 WHIP over 27 appearances appeared to be solid, but underlying metrics painted a more troubling picture. His 4.2 K/9 rate and 5.0 BB/9 rate were well below league average. Additionally, his 5.96 FIP and .149 BABIP suggested he had been benefiting from unsustainable luck, hinting at an inevitable regression. 

González cleared waivers and remained with the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate, where he posted a 4.50 ERA and 1.73 WHIP across 21 relief appearances. While his strikeout and walk numbers improved in the minors, his batted-ball luck vanished, giving up 11.9 hits per nine innings. 

Meanwhile, the Dodgers were able to flip Sweeney to the Detroit Tigers at the trade deadline for right-handed starter Jack Flaherty, one of the game’s top pitchers in 2024. After posting a 1.114 OPS over 11 games with Triple-A Toledo, Sweeney earned a promotion to the majors and has since become Detroit’s everyday shortstop. As of early Sunday afternoon, he is slashing .211/.263/.408 with four home runs and a .971 fielding percentage in 25 games. 

The Yankees’ bullpen now has more than enough arms to get through the rest of the season, but uncertainty remains over who will handle high-leverage spots. Tim Hill and Tim Mayza are the only left-handed relief options remaining on the 40-man roster, unless Nestor Cortes Jr. moves to a relief role the postseason.