*Photo from AM New York*
Looking for some power in the middle of the order, the San Diego Padres brought in some excess goods. The Padres have acquired 1B Luke Voit from the New York Yankees in exchange for RHP Justin Lange, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Both teams have confirmed the trade.
Padres manager Bob Melvin said of getting Voit that "It's a great fit for us. Obviously with Fernando down, it gives us more production. I've been on the other side of his bat several times. He knows how to DH, can play a little first maybe against left-handed pitching. This just makes us a better team."
Last season, Voit was limited to just 68 games due to injury and Anthony Rizzo in town, but is one season off the 2020 home run crown. Voit had a .239 batting average with a .437 slugging percentage and .764 OPS, mashing 11 home runs with 35 RBI's for the 3rd place Yankees, who got bounced out of the playoffs in the wild card game.
In Voit's 5 year career, split between the St. Louis Cardinals and Yankees, he has a .267 average with a .510 slugging percentage and .867 OPS, hitting 73 home runs with 203 RBI's in 351 regular season games. Voit has a .214 average with one home run and 6 RBI's in 12 career playoff games in two years.
Voit said of the trade to the Padres that "I'm excited not only about the organization, but they've got a team ready to win. I'm super excited. I get to play with my college teammate Pierce Johnson. I can't wait. It's 75 F every day. I don't have to deal with New York in April now. I'm really happy. It's a good thing for my career. It's a fresh start with a new team."
Coming back to the Yankees is Lange, who was chosen with the 34th overall pick in the 2020 draft by the Padres. He was the Padres 8th ranked prospect by MLB Pipeline at the time of the trade. He made his pro debut with the Padres ACL team in 2021, with a 0-3 record and a 6.95 ERA in 22 innings pitched, making 9 starts.
Padres GM AJ Preller said of losing Lange that "He’s a talent, he’s got a good arm, he’s a good athlete; all those reasons are why we liked him in the Draft. Ultimately, it’s a prospect that’s a little bit away. It’s going to take him some time. But we expect him to go out and do well for the Yankees. You always have to give up something that’s good to get somebody that’s good."
Barring a trade of incumbent first baseman Eric Hosmer, Voit will likely see the majority of his playing time at DH, with the ability to spell Hosmer in the field when necessary. Lange will either start 2022 with the Yankees FCL team, or Low A Tampa.
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