Earlier Wednesday, the Yankees made the following roster moves:
Added OF Estevan Florial, RHP Deivi García, RHP Luis Gil, RHP Brooks Kriske, RHP Luis Medina, RHP Nick Nelson and RHP Miguel Yajure to the Major League roster.
Released OF Jacoby Ellsbury.
Designated 1B Greg Bird and LHP Nestor Cortes Jr. for assignment.
Florial, 21, hit .237 (65-for-274) with 38 R, 10 doubles, 3 triples, 8 HR, 38 RBI, 24 BB and 9 SB in 74 games with Single-A Tampa in 2019. Following the season, he was tabbed by Baseball America as being the Yankees' "fastest baserunner." In five Minor League seasons, the left-handed batter has hit .273/.353/.437 (412-for-1,507) with 261 R, 73 doubles, 24 triples, 42 HR, 213 RBI and 182 BB in 392 games. A native of Barahona, Dominican Republic, he was originally signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on March 19, 2015. u5:p
García, 20, went 5-9 with a 4.28 ERA (111.1 IP, 96 H, 58 R/53 ER, 54 BB, 165 K, 10 HR) in 26 appearances (21 starts) between Single-A Tampa, Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2019. The right-handed pitcher posted the fourth-highest K/9.0 IP ratio (13.34) among all Minor League pitchers (min. 75.0 IP) this season and led all Yankees farmhands in strikeouts. The Bonoa, Dominican Republic, native was named a 2019 Eastern League Mid-Season All-Star and was selected to the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game in Cleveland. Following the season, García was tabbed by Baseball America as the Yankees' No. 3 prospect and as having the "best slider" among Yankees farmhands. In four Minor l=League seasons, García has gone 17-20 with a 3.37 ERA (293.2 IP, 211 H, 123 R/110 ER, 125 BB, 416 K, 23 HR) and a 12.74 K/9.0 IP ratio in 65 games (57 starts). He was originally signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on July 2, 2015. u5:p
Gil, 21, posted an 11.53 K/9.0 IP ratio while going 5-5 with a 2.72 ERA (96.0 IP, 71 H, 36 R/29 ER, 47 BB, 123 K, 1 HR) in 20 starts between Single-A Charleston and Single-A Tampa in 2019. The right-handed pitcher posted the second-lowest ERA among all Yankees farmhands and was named a 2019 South Atlantic League Mid-Season All-Star. Following the season, Gil was named the Yankees' No. 4 prospect by Baseball America. In 62 career Minor League games (46 starts), he has gone 8-12 with a 2.74 ERA (207.0 IP, 149 H, 83 R/63 ER, 124 BB, 264 K, 7 HR) over four seasons. The Azua, Dominican Republic, native was acquired by the Yankees from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for outfielder Jake Cave on March 16, 2018. He was originally signed by the Twins as a non-drafted free agent on February 13, 2015. u5:p
Kriske, 25, combined to go 3-3 with a 2.08 ERA (60.2 IP, 34 H, 15 R/14 ER, 28 BB, 80 K, 3 HR) and 12 saves in 43 relief appearances with Single-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton. The 2019 Florida State League Mid-Season All-Star ranked second among Yankees farmhands in saves. An alum of the University of Southern California, Kriske owns a career 5-7 record with a 1.97 ERA (105.1 IP, 71 H, 29 R/23 ER, 43 BB, 135 K, 3 HR) and 19 saves in 72 relief appearances over three Minor League seasons. He was originally selected by the Yankees in the sixth round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft. u5:p
Medina, 20, made 22 starts for Single-A Charleston and Single-A Tampa in 2019, going 1-8 with a 5.47 ERA (103.2 IP, 93 H, 70 R/63 ER, 70 BB, 127 K, 9 HR). Following the season, Medina was tabbed by Baseball America as the Yankees' No. 7 prospect and as having the "best fastball" among organization farmhands. In four Minor League seasons, the right-handed pitcher has gone 4-13 with a 5.51 ERA (183.0 IP, 158 H, 135 R/112 ER, 144 BB, 217 K, 13 HR) and a 10.67 K/9.0 IP ratio. Born in Nagua, Dominican Republic, Medina was originally signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on July 8, 2015. u5:p
Nelson, 23, made 18 appearances (17 starts) with Double-A Trenton, Single-A Tampa and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2019, going 8-3 with a 2.81 ERA (89.2 IP, 72 H, 29 R/28 ER, 43 BB, 114 K, 6 HR), the third-lowest ERA among all Yankees Minor Leaguers. In 76 career appearances (74 starts), the right-handed pitcher has gone 19-24 with a 3.64 ERA (333.1 IP, 286 H, 150 R/135 ER, 178 BB, 387 K, 14 HR) and a 10.45 K/9.0 IP ratio across four Minor League seasons. Born in Panama City, Florida, Nelson was selected by the Yankees in the fourth round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft. u5:p
Yajure, 21, led all of Minor League baseball in ERA in 2019, going 9-6 with a 2.14 ERA (138.2 IP, 119 H, 48 R/33 ER, 30 BB, 133 K, 5 HR) in 24 games (20 starts) with Single-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton. The Cabimas, Venezuela, native ranked second among Yankees Minor Leaguers in strikeouts and was named a 2019 Florida State League Postseason All-Star. Following the season, he was named by Baseball America as having the "best control" among Yankees farmhands. In 61 career appearances (54 starts) over four Minor League seasons, the right-handed pitcher has gone 14-13 with a 2.47 ERA (291.2 IP, 261 H, 116 R/80 ER, 70 BB, 246 K, 10 HR). He was originally signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on March 5, 2015.
