The Yankees announced on Friday that they have signed outfielder Noun Eden in a trade that returns money to the Blue Jays. He was initially assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Eden, 26, was selected in the sixth round by Toronto in 2019. He briefly made his major league debut late last season, appearing in five games and going 1-for-6 with two strikeouts. The Jays removed him from the 40-man roster after the season and sent him directly to Triple-A Buffalo. Since Eden was not on the Jays’ 40-man roster at any point this season, he is still tradeable after the major league transfer deadline.
(See also: How to acquire players after the MLB transfer deadline)
Although Eden is unlikely to play a major role in the Yankees’ plans down the stretch, he is a Triple-A player at a time when Everson Pereira is out for the rest of the season and Jason Dominguez could soon be called up to the major leagues. Eden is also a possible option for the bench or as a pinch-runner in September or even in the postseason if the Yankees decide to dedicate a roster spot to someone with that kind of specialty skill set. He only has a .198/.299/.322 batting average this season with a 27.4% strikeout rate, but he’s also stolen 26 bases in 33 attempts. This is his second run through the Triple-A level; Eden posted a .257/.354/.333 batting average there last year and stole 53 bases in 57 attempts.
Eden has played all three outfield positions in his professional career. The Cal product has spent the majority of his time in center field. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs ranked him near the bottom of the Jays’ top 34 prospects in 2022, praising Eden’s above-average speed, quick first step in center field and baserunning dexterity – but also noted that his lack of offensive upside limits his potential.
