
NEW YORK — The Yankees stepped up their rebuilding, trading outfielder Carlos Beltran to the AL West-leading Texas Rangers for right-hander Dillon Tate, the fourth overall pick in the 2015 amateur draft, and two other pitching prospects.
A 39-year-old switch-hitter, Beltran has been the Yankees' top offensive player, leading New York with a .304 batting average, 22 homers and 64 RBIs. The trade Monday follows deals that sent relievers Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs and Andrew Miller to Cleveland.
Beltran joins a Texas team that recently lost slugger Prince Fielder, who had been their primary designated hitter, to season-ending neck surgery.
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Beltran signed a $45 million, three-year contract before the 2014 season. He will be eligible for free agency after this year's World Series.
He was traded from Kansas City to Houston in June 2004 and from the New York Mets to San Francisco in July 2011. While he has appeared in the playoffs with the Astros, Mets, Cardinals and Yankees, Beltran remains in search of his first World Series title.