The New York Yankees Acquire Left-Hander Weathers, Trading Three Promising Prospects to Strengthen Their Rotation

To bolster their starting rotation facing early-season setbacks, the New York Yankees today revealed a trade with the Miami Marlins to acquire left-hander Ryan Weathers, parting with a group of four talented prospects.

In this deal, the Marlins received outfielders Brendan Jones and Dillon Lewis, along with infielders Dylan Jasso and Juan Matheus. According to MLB Pipeline rankings, Jones (15th), Lewis (16th), and Jasso (23rd) are all among the Yankees’ top 30 prospects.

Weathers is the son of longtime major leaguer David Weathers, who pitched for the Yankees in 1996-97 and contributed 11 strong innings in the 1996 playoffs, helping the team win its first championship since 1978. The younger Weathers is expected to serve as a transitional starter for the Yankees early in the season, as lefty Carlos Rodón and right-handers Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt will miss the start due to recovery from surgery.

At 26 years old, Weathers will slot into the rotation behind Max Fried and share starting duties with Cam Schlittler, Will Warren, and Luis Gil, while Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn will provide additional depth.

Fried, Schlittler, and Warren all pitched career-high innings last season, prompting the Yankees to actively seek pitching reinforcements. The team explored other options, including Marlins right-hander Edward Cabrera, who was eventually traded to the Cubs, and has been linked to Brewers’ Freddy Peralta and Nationals’ MacKenzie Gore.

Weathers was selected in the first round of the 2018 draft by the San Diego Padres and traded to the Marlins in 2023. He remains under team control for three more years. Over his career, he has pitched 281 innings with a 4.93 ERA and 235 strikeouts. Durability has been a challenge, as he has never started more than 18 games in a single season (achieved during his rookie year with the Padres). His arsenal includes a four-seam fastball, changeup, slider, complemented by a sinker and curveball.

Last season, Weathers started only eight games due to injuries, including a left forearm flexor strain during spring training and a left latissimus dorsi strain in the summer.