The New York Yankees have bolstered their lineup with the acquisition of seasoned hitter Bryan De La Cruz, claimed off waivers from the Braves and assigned to their Triple-A team. To accommodate De La Cruz on the 40-man roster, the Yankees moved Giancarlo Stanton to the 60-day injured list.

This decision was somewhat expected given the rather bleak prognosis for Stanton’s elbows. Teams often strategically use the 60-day IL to free up roster spots. Despite recent optimistic updates about Stanton, such as him engaging in batting practice, he is still anticipated to miss a significant amount of time. His recovery timeline remains largely unchanged, as he would still undergo a near-complete spring training regimen before returning.

Regarding De La Cruz, just a year ago, he was a regular player for the Miami Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates. He is known for hitting left-handed pitchers hard when in form, a quality the Yankees have been lacking, aside from Aaron Judge and Paul Goldschmidt. De La Cruz posted a .707 OPS over more than 100 games with Miami last year before his performance dropped considerably in Pittsburgh.

With Ronald Acuña Jr. initially unavailable, the Braves had signed De La Cruz as a supplementary outfield option in 2025, but things didn’t work out as planned. Despite an opportunity for more playing time due to Jurickson Profar’s suspension, De La Cruz only managed one extra-base hit in 50 plate appearances, leading to his transfer to a new organization.

Interestingly, it’s Alex Verdugo who has capitalized on those chances in Atlanta. Despite his recent struggles, De La Cruz remains a valuable asset for the Yankees, who aim to address some of his deficiencies in the minors, particularly where they lacked outfield depth at Triple-A. If they can restore De La Cruz’s form to what fans witnessed during his Miami tenure (.724 OPS over four seasons from 2021-24), he might eventually find a place on the major league roster.