NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 10: A General View of Michael Pineda #35 of the New York Yankees pitching against the Tampa Bay Rays during the New York Yankees home Opening game at Yankee Stadium on April 10, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Coming off their worst single month in over 30 years, the New York Yankees are turning to their minor league system for a potential boost.
The Yankees announced this evening that they have promoted shortstop Oswald Peraza, their No. 3 prospect, from Triple-A. Peraza, 22, is the No. 53 prospects in all of minor league baseball, according to MLB Pipeline.
In 99 games at Triple-A this season, Peraza is slashing .259/.329/.448 with 19 home runs, 50 RBI and 33 stolen bases.
The Yankees have struggled with offensive production from the shortstop position all season long, and despite what Aaron Boone and Brian Cashman claim about Isiah Kiner-Falefa, he’s nowhere close to one of the better defensive shortstops in baseball.
Presumably, the Yankees will give Peraza an opportunity to start and prove himself in the coming weeks. After leading the AL East by as many as 15 games on July 9, the Yankees are only six games ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays as of tonight, with only a five-game advantage in the loss column.
New York went a brutal 10-18 in August, the franchise’s worst month since September 1991. Maybe Peraza will help get them going in the right direction again.
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