Yankees Trade Justin Wilson to Detroit Tigers for Two Prospects

Just one day after packaging reliever Adam Warren in a trade to the Cubs in order to acquire Starlin Castro, Brian Cashman dealt yet another important piece of the Yankees bullpen.

This time it was 28-year old southpaw Justin Wilson, and he was traded to the Detroit Tigers for a pair or right handed pitching prospects – Luis Cessa and Chad Green.

Justin Wilson was acquired last off season from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for backup catcher Francisco Cervelli. In 2015 Wilson tossed 61.0 innings as the seventh inning swingman, posting a 3.10 ERA and 1.4 WAR while striking out a career high 66 batters. Though his time in the Bronx was short lived, Justin Wilson was a very important piece to the bullpen, especially after Yankees rookie Chasen Shreve fell apart in the second half of the season.

Luis Cessa, a 23-year old native of Veracruz, Mexico pitched to a 4.52 ERA in 139.1 innings pitched across Double-A and Triple-A last year. Cessa was traded to the Tigers during the 2015 MLB Trade Deadline as part of the package that brought Yoenis Cespedes to the New York Mets. He was ranked 6th overall in the Tigers farm system by MLB Pipe Line.

The 24-year old Chad Green on the other hand was drafted by the Tigers in the 11th round of the 2013 MLB Draft out of the University of Louisville. His 2015 numbers are equally as unimpressive as Cessa’s, as he pitched to a 5-14 record with a 3.93 ERA at Double-A last season. However Cessa did manage to throw strikeout 137 batters in 148 innings pitched.

In lieu of the trade, Brian Cashman told Marly Rivera of ESPN.com;

"“We are getting back two starting pitchers that will go straight to Triple A at 12 years under our control between them; they can compete for opportunities in the pen or starting rotation, and that is an area of weakness for us. This had a lot to do with getting starting pitcher depth.”"

However, there are some industry insiders who believe this move is a prerequisite to something bigger.

Stay tuned.

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