After brief stops in the farm systems of the Kansas City Royals and Cincinnati Reds, Bubba Thompson, a former top prospect for the Texas Rangers, will be joining the New York Yankees.
Bubba Thompson, an outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds, was claimed by the New York Yankees off waivers, the team announced on Thursday.
On December 28, the Reds placed Thompson on the designated for assignment list to create space on the 40-man roster for free agency reliever Buck Farmer.
Two months after the Kansas City Royals selected him in the middle of the season, Cincinnati claimed Thompson off waivers in October. Before that, Thompson had been a member of the Texas Rangers for his whole seven-year career.
Thompson was hitting.260 with two home runs, 17 RBI, 16 stolen bases, and a.740 OPS in 32 games with the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate in Round Rock this season. Thompson is a previous first round selection and a high prospect in the Rangers’ system. After moving to Omaha, Thompson played 33 games with the Royals’ Triple-A affiliate, hitting.259 with four home runs, 17 RBI, 11 stolen bases, and a.723 OPS.
This season, Thompson made 37 major league appearances for the Rangers, batting.170 with a.520 OPS. In 55 games in 2022, Thompson batted a more manageable.265 with a.613 OPS.
Throughout his minor league career, the 25-year-old has averaged 20 home runs, 81 RBI, and 58 stolen bases every 162 games. In Triple-A as recently as 2022, Thompson hit.304 with an OPS of.829.
In the majors, left-handed pitchers have held Thompson to a.165 batting average, while right-handed pitchers have allowed him to bat at a.285 average. Despite this, Thompson has at least shown off his above-average speed in MLB play, stealing 22 bases in his career on just 27 attempts.
The first-round selection from 2017 was a top-five talent in Texas’ organization in 2018 and 2019, but by 2022, he was ranked as low as No. 29 on MLB Pipeline.
With Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, and Alex Verdugo as a stable starting outfield, the Yankees also have defensive specialist Trent Grisham as a pinch hitter. Thompson might contend for a position on the active roster in early 2024 if New York wishes to have a fifth outfielder given that top prospect Jasson Domínguez is still recovering from Tommy John surgery.
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