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3-way trade sends Souza to D-backs, Drury to Yanks

Reuters

After losing free agent slugger J.D. Martinez, the Arizona Diamondbacks are trying to replace some of the missing power.

In a three-way trade Tuesday, Arizona dealt infielder Brandon Drury to the New York Yankees and received slugging right fielder Steven Souza from the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Diamondbacks also got right-handed pitching prospect Taylor Widener from the Yankees. New York shipped second base prospect Nick Solak to Rays.

Arizona will give up three minor-leaguers, with prized left-hander Anthony Banda and two other players to be named going from the Diamondbacks to Tampa Bay.

The D-backs clearly hope Souza, who turns 29 in April, can help replace the loss of Martinez, who hit a career-high 45 home runs in 2017. Martinez reportedly agreed to a free agent deal with the Boston Red Sox on Monday.

Souza is coming off a career year in Tampa Bay, where he reached career highs in homers (30), RBIs (78), stolen bases (16), slugging percentage (.459) and OPS (.810). The right fielder first broke into the majors with the Washington Nationals in 2014 but spent the past three years with the Rays.

A career .236 hitter, Souza has averaged 21 home runs and nearly 12 steals over the past three seasons.

Drury hits for a higher average and brings decent power to New York along with plenty of positional versatility. The 25-year-old has played second and third base as well as outfield in his three-year career. Over the past two seasons, Drury averaged 34 doubles and 14.5 home runs, and he owns a career .271 batting average.

Widener, 23, went 7-8 with a 3.39 ERA in 27 starts for high Class A Tampa last year.

Solak, 23, split last season between high Class A and Double-A, hitting a combined .297 with a .384 on-base percentage, a .452 slugging percentage, 12 homers and 53 RBIs in 130 games.

Banda, 24, appeared in eight major league games for Arizona last year, including four starts. He went 2-3 with a 5.96 ERA. In 22 starts for Triple-A Reno, he finished 8-7 with a 5.39 ERA.

--Field Level Media