The New York Yankees are one of the best teams in the MLB right now. With the All-Star break within sight, this is exactly where the team wants to be. That makes the Yankees’ news involving Chaury Gomez that much more intriguing.
After their most recent victory over the Washington Nationals, the Yankees are now four games back of the Tampa Bay Rays for first in the AL East. They are seven games ahead of the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox, while the Baltimore Orioles round out the division, being eight and a half games back.
In the middle of their series against the Nationals, the Yankees made a surprising move with Gomez.
According to the MiLB transactions log, the Yankees organization has moved Gomez to the restricted list on July 11th. Gomez is a 19-year-old prospect, currently playing for DSL NYY Bombers. He is listed at 6-foot-1 and 166 pounds.
In 29 career minor league games, he has recorded 31 strikeouts, three holds, two saves, and a 9.76 ERA over 27.2 innings.
Why is Chaury Gomez on the Restricted List? What is it?
With all that being said, it raises a few questions. What is the restricted list? Why is Gomez on it?
Here is what Baseball Reference has to say about the Restricted list:
“The Restricted list is a compendium of players who are out of organized baseball but are not free agents,” the website states. “A team can request that a player be placed on the restricted list if that player has left the team without a valid reason, or has announced his intention to retire but is still of an age or level of skill that could allow him to return to professional baseball in the future. In effect, the team states that it retains rights to the player if and when he becomes active again.”
“The list is also used to place a player who is unavailable to play for non-baseball reasons, such as personal issues or trouble with the law.”
Baseball-Reference also shows that this list is honored by leagues around the world.
!A player on the restricted list cannot be signed by another team unless compensation is paid to the team who placed him on the list,” BR says. “The list is honored throughout organized baseball and in leagues that have working agreements to respect the contracts of organized baseball, such as Nippon Pro Baseball. The list is most often used today when a player retires at a young age without receiving his unconditional release. If he decides to return to playing, he must do so with his last team, unless a trade or other deal can be worked out.”
At this point, the Yankees have not released an official statement on Gomez, so it’s tough to pinpoint the exact reason for the transaction.
New York Yankees vs Washington Nationals Series
On Saturday, the Yankees play the second game of their current series. This series versus the Nationals closes out their pre-All-Star week schedule.
According to the Yankees’ website, the probable pitchers for the July 11th game are Cam Schlitter versus PJ Poulin. The game is scheduled to start at 4:05 PM Eastern Time.
Yankees Move 19-Year-Old Prospect to Restricted List During Nationals Series