The Washington Nationals made a late trade right before the season. Paul Toboni traded 21 year old pitching prospect Sean Paul Linan to the Yankees in exchange for infielder Jorbit Vivas. This move will bolster the Nationals infield depth. Vivas will be on the 40-man roster, so the Nats will have to make a corresponding move.
This is an interesting little trade that came out of left field. Linan just joined the Nats organization in July in a deal that sent Alex Call to the Dodgers. However, Toboni must not have loved what he saw. I am a bit surprised they traded him for an infielder with no options, who has a lot of overlapping skills with Jose Tena.
I would not be surprised if this move could mark the end for Tena. Vivas is an infielder who mainly plays second and third base. He is also out of options, so he will have to be on the big league roster. Clearly, Toboni prefers Vivas over Tena or maybe even Nasim Nunez.
While Vivas struggled in his first taste of big league action in 2025, he did show some intriguing traits. He only went 9/56, but showed solid contact skills and a good approach. There is not much power in his game, but he can go deep every once in a while.
Vivas will have to hit a decent amount in the MLB because he is a fringy runner and an average defender. Honestly, I do not really know if he is a huge upgrade over Tena and I probably would have kept Linan. However, there is a reason Toboni has the job and not me.
Linan is an intriguing pitching prospect, but there are reasons to be bearish about him. He has a phenomenal changeup that is one of the best pitches in the minors. However, he is a bit of a one trick pony. His fastball is pretty ordinary and his breaking balls are fringy. Linan was able to dominate A ball with his changeup, but how far will that one weapon take him?
Clearly, Toboni was not a Linan believer given this return. After this move, I wonder if the Nats are done. I would not be surprised if they tried to see if they could get an arm for Jose Tena. The 24 year old should have at least a bit of value. Some team would probably want to give him a shot as a utility guy.
This is a bit of a weird move, but it is not a massive one by any means. Toboni must value Vivas’ contact and plate discipline a lot. Having worked for the Red Sox for many years, Toboni is likely to have seen a lot of this Yankees prospect. Vivas has a solid track record in the minors and is now likely to get some run in the big leagues with the Nats.
