CHICAGO _ There's an acute need for another starter on the Yankees, but that hasn't stopped them from adding more offensive firepower.
Slugger Edwin Encarnacion is heading to the Yankees via trade from the Seattle Mariners, as first reported by ESPN's Jeff Passan.
A former three-time All-Star, the right-handed hitting Encarnacion, 36, is currently leading the AL with 21 home runs and is slashing .241/.356/.531 in 65 games.
The deal surfaced during the Yankees' 8-4 win on Saturday against the White Sox, on a misty night when things mostly clicked for Aaron Boone's stumbling club.
And the Yankees did it without the help of a traditional starter.
In his fifth turn as the Yankees' opener this year, Chad Green registered six strikeouts in his two scoreless innings at Guaranteed Rate Field, and lefty Nestor Cortes Jr. followed with another round of effective relief.
Gary Sanchez delivered a two-run double and Gleyber Torres clubbed a two-run homer in the Yankees' four-run fourth inning off White Sox starter Reynaldo Lopez.
After the ejections of catcher Wellington Castillo and manager Rick Renteria, the White Sox (34-35) cut into the Yanks' 7-0 lead, scoring four times in the eighth _ three coming on James McCann's two-out homer off Jonathan Holder.
In snapping a three-game losing streak, the Yankees (42-27) regained first place by a half-game in the AL East over the Rays.
Entering Saturday's game, Yankees starters had pitched to a 6.45 ERA during a stretch where the club had lost eight of its last 11 games.
That does not include Green's previous turn as an opener. The Yankees have now won all five games that Green has opened in 2019.
Though the Yankees passed on free agent Dallas Keuchel earlier this month, due to Atlanta's willingness to meet his price on a one-year contract, the Yankees are expected to be deeply involved in the trade market for starting pitching leading up to the July 31 deadline.
The acquisition of Encarnacion would seem to end the Kendrys Morales experiment; the switch-hitting first baseman/designated hitter is currently on the 10-day injured list with a mild left calf strain.
Encarnacion would be expected to play some at first base and perhaps mainly serve as a DH with the Yankees, who are also expected to get Giancarlo Stanton back from the IL by Tuesday and Aaron Judge before long.
The trade for Encarnacion and the returns of Stanton and Judge will also impact the playing time of Brett Gardner, Clint Frazier and Cameron Maybin.
Right-handed pitching prospect Juan Then, 19, is the lone player going to Seattle in return for Encarnacion, according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale.
Obtained by Seattle from Cleveland in a three-way trade that involved Tampa Bay last December, Encarnacion is in the final year of a three-year, $60 million contract. He also has a $5 million buyout for 2020 if his club option for $20 million is not triggered.
The Yanks are responsible for half of the roughly $10 million on Encarnacion's remaining 2019 salary and his $5 million buyout, per Nightengale.
The arrival of Encarnacion could potentially take DH at-bats away from Stanton, making him a more-or-less full-time outfielder.
In his first season as an American Leaguer last year, Stanton started 85 games at DH and 72 in the outfield. Stanton dealt with a hamstring issue for much of last August but did not go on the injured list.
This year, Stanton has been sidelined since April 1, due to biceps, shoulder and calf/knee issues.
Stanton has been playing the outfield during his current minor league rehab stint, including Saturday night's game for Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre as the left fielder.
Boone recently mentioned the potential luxury of having a rotation at the DH spot where he could give players such as Stanton, Judge and Gary Sanchez a break, yet still keep them in the lineup.
But the presence of Encarnacion just makes a deep lineup even deeper.
