Yankees Land García in Deadline Trade
The Yankees acquired first baseman Luis García Jr. from the Washington Nationals, sending right-handed pitchers Jake Bird, Yovanny Cruz, Jack Cebert and Ben Grable to Washington. Both teams announced the deal as complete. García, a New York City native, was scratched about 30 minutes before Sunday's 4-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves and watched from the dugout. Nationals manager Blake Butera said he was told something was really close, though the trade was not yet final.[S1][S2][S5]
García is having a career year, slashing .283/.313/.560 with 23 home runs and 76 RBIs through 104 games. He led the National League with a .560 slugging percentage entering Sunday's games and ranked fifth in the NL with 76 RBIs. He has spent this season as a first baseman or designated hitter after playing earlier in his career at shortstop and second base.[S2][S4][S5]
The Yankees needed another bat with Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger and Giancarlo Stanton out. Since Judge's last game on May 31, New York ranks 25th in MLB with a .385 slugging percentage. Stanton, the Yankees' usual designated hitter, has been on the injured list since April. As of Sunday he had resumed hitting, but no return timeline has been confirmed.[S2][S3][S4]
What the Nationals Received
Washington received four right-handers in exchange for García. Jake Bird, the best-known name in the group, is a veteran of five MLB seasons. The Yankees acquired Bird from the Rockies at last year's trade deadline, but he struggled in New York and was optioned to Triple-A, where he finished 2025. This season, Bird has a 5.93 ERA in 30 relief appearances covering 30 1/3 innings.[S1][S2][S5]
Yovanny Cruz made his major league debut this season and has a 1.69 ERA, a 30% strikeout rate and a 5% walk rate over 5 1/3 innings in four games. Cruz, who turns 27 later this month, spent seven seasons in the minors before joining the Yankees organization last offseason. His fastball has averaged 100 mph.[S1][S4]
Jack Cebert and Ben Grable are both pitching at Double-A. MLB.com ranks Cebert 14th and Grable 25th among Yankees prospects. Cebert, a 15th-round pick in the 2025 draft, has good strikeout ability but has had trouble keeping the ball in the park. Grable, an 11th-round pick out of Indiana, has a 2.45 ERA with a 38.4% strikeout rate over 36 2/3 combined innings at High-A and Double-A.[S1][S2]
Fit, Grades and What's Next
The Athletic's Brendan Kuty reported that the Yankees would 'almost definitely' split García and Paul Goldschmidt's starts at first base based on the opposing pitcher, with Ben Rice in the designated hitter spot. García has hit .295 against right-handers but .218 against lefties; Goldschmidt has hit .309 against lefties and .201 against right-handers. Giancarlo Stanton's eventual return could change that arrangement.[S2]
Other clubs interested in García included the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox, according to Jon Heyman, and the Arizona Diamondbacks, according to Bob Nightengale. Washington was competitive in a supposed rebuilding year, with García, James Wood, CJ Abrams and Curtis Mead driving an offense that leads the majors with 5.37 runs per game. A five-game losing streak dropped the Nationals to 55-58.[S1][S2][S3]
The trade drew mixed grades. The New York Times gave Washington a C and New York an A in one assessment, and a B+ for the Nationals and B- for the Yankees in another. Sports Illustrated gave the Yankees a B+ and called Washington's return light.[S3][S4]
Keith Law said Grable will be a quality reliever and Cebert could be a fifth starter or swingman, adding that the Yankees did a good job turning that into García. García is under team control through 2027, and the Yankees are in their sixth straight year of luxury-tax overages, making his remaining salary more expensive. Yankees fans, who had grown anxious before the deadline, responded with celebration.[S1][S2][S3][S6]
