Yankees Trade Jorbit Vivas for Strikeout-Heavy Pitching Prospect

With the Opening Day roster near completion, the New York Yankees decided to make a trade to shake things up.

While it isn't a groundbreaking move, the team announced they were sending infielder Jorbit Vivas to the Washington Nationals for pitcher Sean Paul Linan.

Vivas, 25, was out of options. The team already knows who their bench options will be, and the lefty simply didn't make the cut.

Somehow, the Yankees were able to get the Nationals No. 27 prospect in return. Linan immediately jumps four spots as he comes to New York and is the team's No. 23 prospect.

A Closer Look at Sean Paul Linan

The New York Yankees today announced that they have acquired minor league right-handed pitcher Sean Paul Liñan from the Washington Nationals in exchange for INF Jorbit Vivas.
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) March 22, 2026

Linan, 21, was a strikeout machine last season. He's still extremely young and in-experienced, but he struck out 106 batters in 77.1 innings a year ago. He's been working his way through the ranks since 2022 and has 269 career strikeouts in 209.0 innings.

The Nationals elected to send Linan to New York, a Yankees team that is desperate for help in the bullpen. That said, Linan did start 15 of the 19 games he pitched in last year which was a career high.

Overall, Linan has started 26 of his 65 games. He sports a 16-9 record with a 3.62 ERA. 2025 was quite notable for the Colombian pitcher as he worked his way up three systems, reaching Triple-A by the end of the year.

Linan was named CAL Pitcher of the Week on April 20, 2025, and was later named CAL Pitcher of the Month in April with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes.

Yankees Made Something Out of Nothing With Jorbit Vivas

Jorbit Vivas, acquired from LAD alongside Victor González for Trey Sweeney, was out of minor league options and wasn't going to make the #Yankees' roster.

Sean Paul Linan, a 21yo RHP, had a 3.03 ERA and 106 K over 77.1 IP across 4 levels, including Triple-A, last season. Started… https://t.co/lbFjypMYaA
— Gary Phillips (@GaryHPhillips) March 22, 2026

Vivas is far from the oldest player on the team but he's been able to rack up seven years of minor league experience. Last year he made his MLB debut but hit just .161 in 66 plate appearances.

At the end of the day a .250 SLG simply wasn't going to cut it. Vivas posted an OBP of .266 which somehow makes that slugging percentage look even worse. Remember, the Yankees had to give up two players to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2023 to bring Vivas in.

Even if Linan doesn't amount to anything in the immediate future, this trade is still a huge win. New York had next to no options with Vivas as he clearly wasn't making the Opening Day roster, but somehow they salvaged the situation and brought in a pitcher who could quickly work his way up the ranks now in the Yankees organization.

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