New York Yankees Acquire De La Cruz (Yes, Really)

It's one of the most well-known names in baseball these days. De La Cruz. And now the New York Yankees have one of their own. Unfortunately for the Bronx Bombers, it's not Elly, but rather Bryan De La Cruz (no relation, either in bloodlines or in superstar skills).

Yankees have added Bryan De La Cruz to their 40-man roster pic.twitter.com/5H3d9D9Ap2
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) May 1, 2025

The Yankees have claimed Bryan De La Cruz off waivers from the Atlanta Braves, and optioned him to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

De La Cruz broke camp with the Braves to start the season, with the team down Ronald Acuna Jr. in the outfield. Then when Jurickson Profar was suspended for 80 games for PED use, De La Cruz got another reprieve to stay with the big club.

But after newly signed Alex Verdugo had completed his conditioning stint and was ready to be activated, the Braves sent De La Cruz down to Triple-A Gwinnett. He was hitting just .192 in 50 plate appearances in Atlanta, with zero homers, zero RBIs and a .453 OPS. His numbers down in AAA haven't been much better.

The Braves apparently tried to sneak him through waivers, without DFAing him, but the Yankees caught on and claimed him for some depth in the minors.

In a couple of decent seasons with the Miami Marlins to start his career in 2021/22, De La Cruz, now 28, hit .269 with a 104 OPS+. But over his past two big league seasons, it hasn't gone so well, as the Dominican outfielder has batted just .243 with an 83 OPS+.

He'll try to right the ship at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in the Yankees system.