Howard to Yankees, Rodriguez, Bradford optioned

The Texas Rangers have traded pitcher Spencer Howard to the New York Yankees for cash, per reports on the Tweetbox. With the Rangers having acquired Austin Hedges today at the deadline, they needed to clear a 40 man roster spot, and Howard appears to be the odd man out.

The Rangers acquired Spencer Howard from the Philadelphia Phillies, along with Josh Gessner and Kyle Dowdy, at the 2021 deadline in exchange for Kyle Gibson, Ian Kennedy and Hans Crouse. It is one of those deals that didn’t really work out for anyone, as neither Kennedy nor Gibson pitched well for the Phillies during their time there, and Crouse got outrighted from the Phillies’ 40 man roster and has barely pitched the past two years.

Howard was a once highly regarded pitching prospect who never could get it to click with the Phillies. He started the 2022 season in the Rangers’ rotation, wasn’t good, couldn’t stay healthy, and shuffled between the majors and minors. He started the 2023 season on the 60 day injured list, looked good in the pen for Round Rock in a couple of rehab appearances, was brought up to the big leagues, gave up 4 runs in 3 relief appearances spanning 3.1 IP, and is now a Yankee.

UPDATE — Announcement has made and the trade is official. In addition, Yerry Rodriguez and Cody Bradford have been optioned to AAA Round Rock. The removal of Howard, Rodriguez and Bradford from the active roster clears spots for Max Scherzer, Jordan Montgomery and Chris Stratton on the active roster. When Hedges reports — presumably tomorrow — another move will need to be made, most likely Bubba Thompson being optioned.