The Yankees and Twins executed a trade on Friday that sent Minor League right-hander Luis Gil to New York and outfielder Jake Cave to Minnesota, both clubs announced.
However, a corresponding move also left Twins slugger Kennys Vargas potentially out of a job, as Vargas was designated for assignment. The Puerto Rican-born slugger had been competing for a bench role on the Opening Day roster, and his chances took a hit when the club signed Logan Morrison to be its everyday DH.
Once a promising prospect who thrived through the Minors on power, Vargas has struggled in the Majors with plate discipline. He is a career .252 hitter with 35 homers over parts of four seasons with the Twins. He appeared in 12 games this spring, going 9-fof-32 (.281) with three doubles, four walks and 10 strikeouts.
:: Spring Training coverage presented by Camping World ::
Cave became available after he was designated for assignment on Monday. The 25-year-old has yet to crack the Majors, but he did impress last year in 72 games for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, posting a slash line of .324/.367/.554 with 15 homers and 38 RBIs over 297 plate appearances. Cave was originally a sixth-round pick by the Yankees in 2011 and spent a brief stint in the Reds organization in '15-16 as a Rule 5 Draft pick before rejoining New York.
Gil, 19, made 14 starts for the Dominican Summer League Twins last year, going 0-2 with a 2.59 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 41 2/3 innings.