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The New York Yankees have refused to part ways with top centerfield prospect Spencer Jones in trade negotiations for ace pitchers Corbin Burnes and Dylan Cease, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
“Yankees make big bet on all-around CF prospect/prodigy Spencer Jones. Had they been willing to give him up, they very likely would have had Dylan Cease or Corbin Burnes,” Heyman wrote February 8 on X.
Burnes, the 2021 N.L. Cy Young Award winner, was dealt by the Milwaukee Brewers earlier this month to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for infield prospect Joey Ortiz, young lefty pitcher D.L. Hall and the 34th pick in the 2024 draft. Both the Brewers and White Sox, who have yet to trade Cease, have insisted on received Jones from the Yankees in trade talks, Heyman reports.
“The Yankees were certainly in on Burnes, they certainly talked. My understanding is Milwaukee, like the White Sox, wanted Spencer Jones,” Heyman told Bleacher Report. “People love Spencer Jones. He was asked about for [Dylan] Cease, he was asked about for Burnes. […] So Spencer Jones I think was the key for the Yankees, and they don’t want to give him up.”
Spencer Jones Drawing Aaron Judge-Like Expectations
Jones was recently ranked as the No. 84 overall prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline. He bats left-handed and stands 6-foot-6, 235 pounds. The hype around the 22-year-old led Heyman to write “Is Spencer Jones the next Aaron Judge?” in his Feb. 8 NY Post article.
Scouts see Jones as a future 30 home run-30 stolen base threat, according to Heyman. The Yankees invited Jones to spring training this year after he had 16 home runs and 43 stolen bases for High-A Hudson Valley and Double-A Somerset in 2023.
Jones recorded a .267/.336/.444/.780 slash line across the two levels with 66 RBI, 29 doubles and four triples across 517 plate appearances in 117 games. The Yankees drafted Jones with the No. 25-overall pick out of Vanderbilt in the 2022 MLB Draft.
“Doesn’t have Judge power but does have good power and a plus arm, and is a 70 runner (on 20-80 scale, aka elite) who can play CF” was one scout’s assessment of Jones, per Heyman.
White Sox Leaning Towards Keeping Cease to Start Season
While Burnes is a free agent after the upcoming season, Cease will not be a free agent until 2026. His two years of team control position the White Sox to hold out for a strong trade package.
“The White Sox are now seen as greater than 50-50 now to hold onto Cease into the season,” Heyman reported Feb. 8.
The Orioles made a trade offer for Cease before they acquired Burnes, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Nightengale previously reported that the White Sox have asked for Jones or right-handed pitcher Chase Hampton in Cease trade talks with the Yankees.
Another team involved in trade discussions for Cease has been the Seattle Mariners. The White Sox have sought to acquire young Mariners pitchers Bryce Miller or Bryan Woo, Nightengale reported on Jan. 27.
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