Inside The Pinstripes

Two Factors That Pushed The Yankees to Trade Jose Trevino

The New York Yankees dealt veteran backup catcher Jose Trevino to the Reds. Here's why they ultimately made the tough decision to deal their defensive whiz.

Pat Ragazzo

Oct 28, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Yankees catcher Jose Trevino (39) walks to the bull pin to warm up before playing against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game three of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Oct 28, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Yankees catcher Jose Trevino (39) walks to the bull pin to warm up before playing against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game three of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
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The New York Yankees have traded a lot of catchers in the past year: from Ben Rortvedt to Kyle Higashioka to Luis Torrens to Carlos Narvaez and now Jose Trevino.

The Yankees dealt Trevino to the Cincinnati Reds in December for high-strikeout righty reliever Fernando Cruz, which strengthened their bullpen, and catcher Alex Jackson.

The Yankees had been hot after multiple Reds' relievers since last summer's trade deadline, as Yankees On SI first reported. And while a deal never came to fruition during the season, the two sides agreed on a trade last month.

Rookie Austin Wells showed promise at the plate and behind it in the 2024 season and overtook Trevino for the starting catcher spot after the veteran strained his quad in mid-July. Trevino, 32, is an elite defender and is great at handling a big-league pitching staff, but the 25-year-old Wells brings more upside offensively with his lefty bat.

Regardless, Trevino still has a lot of value even as a $3.425 million backup. He did win the Platinum Glove Award in 2022 and It wasn't an easy call for the Yankees to fork him up, but there are two reasons why they ultimately pulled the trigger on the move.

For starters, Yankees brass loved Cruz and his elite whiff and strikeout percentages that were both in the 99th percentile in all of baseball last year. The 34-year-old averages 94.6 mph on his four-seam fastball, but has a dominant split finger that induced 88 strikeouts, a 59.3% whiff percentage, a .116 opposing batting average and a .097 expected batting average in 2024.

Cruz did not make his MLB debut until 2022 at the age of 32 and has a 4.52 ERA in his career. Despite posting a 4.86 ERA last season, the righty had 109 strikeouts, a 3.27 FIP and a 14.7 K/9 rate across 66.2 innings; the year before he had a 4.91 ERA, 98 punch outs and a 2.83 FIP in 66 innings.

Cruz hasn't even reached arbitration yet and will make $800,000 in 2025. His arbitration years begin in 2026 so he is under cheap team control for at least four more seasons beyond this upcoming campaign.

Cruz is a late bloomer and Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake has a reputation for unlocking the full potential in these types of arms. If the Yankees can cut down his career 4.4 walks per nine rate, Cruz could become a force in the back of their bullpen as a swing-and-miss high-leverage relief pitcher.

Speaking of late bloomers, the Yankees might have their backup catcher already on the roster in 29-year-old J.C. Escarra who the organization is very high on. This is another reason they felt comfortable dealing Trevino.

The budding of Escarra in the minors last year has Yankees people believing in him despite the fact that the veteran catcher hasn't made his big-league debut yet.

Escarra was a 15th round pick by the AL East rival Baltimore Orioles in the 2017 MLB Draft. After four seasons playing in the Orioles system he was released in the beginning of the 2022 season.

Escarra spent the next two years in Independent ball and the Atlantic league. He then landed in the Mexican League and tore it up at the plate thus getting noticed by big-league scouts.

As a result, the Yankees signed him to a minor league deal last January. Escarra showcased his left-handed pop between Double-A Somerset and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2024, slashing .261/.355/.434 with a .789 OPS, 12 home runs and 64 RBI across 124 games. In 52 games in Triple-A, Escarra turned heads with a .302/.403/.527 with a .930 OPS, eight homers and 34 RBI.

Escarra's prowess at the plate also carried over into the Dominican League in winter ball, where he won a batting title in December.

The Yankees chose to add Escarra to the 40-man roster in November in order to keep him from entering minor league free agency. 

Now, Escarra could wind up winning the backup catcher job behind Wells with a good showing in spring training.

Escarra looks like a good find by the Yankees' scouting department and he very well may crack an Opening Day roster spot over Jackson who came over from the Reds with Cruz in the Trevino deal.

Wells had a strong first full season in the bigs last year but looked gassed at the plate down the stretch and in the postseason. The Yankees would be smart to at least have a capable backup catcher with some offensive upside backing up Wells throughout a full campaign; Escarra appears to fit this bill.

Read More:

- MLB Insider Explains Why It's 'Wild' Yankees Aren't Pursuing This Free Agent

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- Yankees Owner Asserts New Additions Make Up For Loss of Juan Soto

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Pat Ragazzo
PAT RAGAZZO

Pat Ragazzo is the main publisher and reporter for the Mets and Yankees On SI sites. He has been covering the Mets since 2018 and Yankees since 2021. Pat was selected as The Top Reporter & Publisher of the Year 2024 by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) for outstanding leadership, dedication, and commitment to the industry. He has appeared on several major TV Networks including: NBC4, CBS2, FOX5, PIX11 and NY1; and is a recurring guest on ESPN New York 880 AM and WFAN Sports Radio 101.9 FM. Pat is also the Mets insider for Barstool Sports personality Frank "The Tank" Fleming’s podcast. You can follow him on Twitter/X and Instagram: @ragazzoreport.

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