Yankees trade 1B Luke Voit to Padres for pitching prospect Justin Lange

Sherman further noted that with Voit being arbitration-eligible, the trade will save the Yankees approximately $5 million. When New York re-signed first baseman Anthony Rizzo to a two-year deal earlier this week, the likelihood of Voit being moved increased.

After being selected in the St. Louis Cardinals in the 22nd round of the 2013 MLB June Amateur Draft, Voit eventually made his big league debut in 2017, collecting four home runs and 18 RBI across 114 at-bats in 62 games played. The Wildwood, Mo. native was traded to the Yankees in July 2018 and produced solid numbers between St. Louis and New York that season, recording 15 home runs, 36 RBI and .322/.398/.671 slash line in just 143 at-bats over 47 contests.

Voit became a key piece of the Yankees lineup in 2019, finishing the season with career-highs in games played (118), at-bats (429), RBI (62), runs scored (72) and hits (113), while knocking 21 home runs as well. Despite a pandemic-shortened campaign in 2020, the 31-year-old erupted for a career-high (and MLB-best) 22 home runs in only 213 at-bats and 56 games and ranked in the top five in numerous other offensive categories, while finishing ninth in the AL MVP voting.

Voit regressed in 2021, as he missed the first part of the season due to torn meniscus in one of his knees. He ended the year with 11 home runs, 35 RBI and career-low .239 batting average.

Lange was selected by the Padres with the 34th overall pick in the 2020 draft but missed out on a year of minor league baseball when the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In nine rookie-level starts in 2021, Lange went 0-3 with a 6.95 ERA.