Yankees move Gray to bullpen in favor of Lynn
The New York Yankees are moving right-handed starter Sonny Gray to the bullpen to open up room for newly acquired righty Lance Lynn in the rotation, general manager Brian Cashman said Thursday.
"Sonny Gray is a very good major league pitcher, we just haven't had the opportunity to really see that play out over an extended period of time," Cashman said on "The Michael Kay Show" on 98.7 ESPN New York. "I know that if he winds up somewhere else pitching, he's going to be pitching extremely well, because the equipment is all there, the stuff is all there, (but) consistently it's not playing out right here."
Cashman indicated he tried to trade Gray before Tuesday's non-waiver trade deadline, but the offers "weren't good enough." Gray has one more year of arbitration before he can hit unrestricted free agency in 2020.
Gray had a rough outing Wednesday in a loss to the Baltimore Orioles. He allowed seven runs on eight hits and was caught smiling while getting booed as he left after 2 2/3 innings. Lynn took the mound and delivered 4 1/3 innings of scoreless relief.
Gray, 28, saw his record fall to 8-8 and his ERA rise to 5.56. In 2017, went 4-7 with a 3.72 ERA following his arrival in New York last July.
"I've struggled," he said. "I don't know if it has anything to do with New York or it's just strictly on the field."
In six major league seasons with the Oakland A's and the Yankees, Gray has a career 56-51 record with a 3.70 ERA in 146 games (144 starts).
Lynn, 31, was traded to the Yankees on Monday from the Minnesota Twins. He is 7-8 with a 4.89 ERA in 21 appearances this season, with Wednesday marking his first bullpen appearance since 2012.
Lynn spent 2015-17 with the St. Louis Cardinals, though he missed all of the 2016 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He has a 79-55 career record with a 3.53 ERA in 204 games (181 starts).
--Field Level Media
