After losing Juan Soto to the New York Mets, the New York Yankees have been highly active in the offseason. According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Yankees have traded Jose Trevino to the Cincinnati Reds.
In exchange, the Yankees will receive right-handed reliever Fernando Cruz and catcher Alex Jackson.
Sherman also noted that this trade further solidifies Austin Wells’ role as the Yankees’ starting catcher for the upcoming season.
“In Trevino, NYY lose pitch whisperer/big into prep work, but due to be FA after ’25 and Wells now clearly No. 1 catcher,” Sherman continued in a separate tweet. “Cruz not yet arb (arbitration) eligible though 35 in March. Had 4.86 ERA in ’24, but 36.1 K pct was 6th-among RP with 50IP. NYY saves few million to perhaps redirect.”
Cruz appears to be the centerpiece of this trade for New York. The three-year veteran racked up 109 strikeouts last season, leading all relievers in 2024.
Meanwhile, Trevino’s tenure with the Yankees ends after three seasons, which included an All-Star selection in 2022. Last year, he hit .215/.288/.354 in 73 games.
Reds GM on Jose Trevino: ‘Something We Felt We Had to Do’
Shortly after the trade was finalized, Nick Krall, President of Baseball Operations for the Reds, addressed the media on a Zoom call, as reported by MLB.com’s Alex Stumpf.
Krall explained that Cincinnati felt it was necessary to make the move to improve their defense.
“We looked at it as a guy that can really upgrade our defense at catching and work really well with the pitching staff,” Krall said, according to Stumpf. “This is something we felt we had to do. Getting a plus-plus defensive catcher to go with Tyler [Stephenson], we really felt it has a chance to be a good combination.”
Trevino is the latest in a series of New York veterans traded this offseason. Following their loss of Soto, the Yankees have adopted an aggressive strategy to retool their roster in preparation for the 2025 season.
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