D-backs acquire OF Jay from Royals for prospects
The Arizona Diamondbacks acquired outfielder Jon Jay from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for pitching prospects Gabe Speier and Elvis Luciano, both teams announced Wednesday.
Jay, 33, is batting .307 with a homer and 18 RBIs in 59 games with the Royals while spending most of his time in left field. He ranks second in MLB with 61 singles since joining Kansas City in March on a one-year, $3 million deal.
Arizona outfielders A.J. Pollock and Steven Souza Jr. are both currently on the 10-day disabled list. Pollock still has a cast on his fractured left thumb after an initial timetable for return was estimated at four to eight weeks on May 14. Souza is two weeks into his second stint on the DL this season, both for a strained right pectoral.
Speier, 23, is 1-0 with a save and a 3.03 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 20 appearances (29 2/3 innings) with Double-A Jackson this season, his sixth in the minors. The left-hander was picked in the 19th round of the 2013 draft by the Boston Red Sox.
Luciano, 18, went 4-1 with a 2.84 ERA in 16 appearances (eight starts) last season with the D-backs' rookie-level affiliates in the Dominican Summer League and Arizona League and rookie-level Missoula. The righty joined Arizona as a non-drafted free agent out of Boca Chica, Dominican Republic, in 2016.
To make room on the 40-man roster, the Diamondbacks designated infielder/outfielder Kristopher Negron for assignment.
Negron, 32, went 1-for-3 with an RBI for the D-backs after having his contract selected from Triple-A Reno on June 4.
--Field Level Media
