The Yankees Still Have Some Work to Do
By Sal Maiorana
January 2025
***
Sal Maiorana, a friend of the site, shares some of his thoughts on the Yankees.
For Sal's complete analysis on the New York Yankees, you can subscribe to Sal Maiorana's free Pinstripe People Newsletter at https://salmaiorana.beehiiv.com/subscribe.
***
The last time I sent out a newsletter that was not part of the World Series project I’ve been sending each Wednesday - and I hope you’ve been enjoying that - the Yankees still had not addressed their gaping hole at first base. And then they did by signing 37-year-old Paul Goldschmidt to a bargain rate one-year, $12.5 million deal.
I had written before this happened that I was 100% hoping the Yankees would sign Christian Walker in free agency, undoubtedly the best available player at the position, but they didn’t want to give up compensation draft picks to sign him, so he ended up with Houston for three years and $60 million.
Goldschmidt was the pivot, and look, he’s not the player he once was, but he still has something left both in the field and at the plate, certainly more than any first baseman the Yankees had last year. As recently as 2022 for the Cardinals, Goldschmidt was the NL MVP and made his seventh All-Star team before the decline began in 2023 and continued into 2024.
Still, in those two years he stayed pretty healthy and played 308 games for St. Louis and had a combined slash line of .257/.333/.430, an OPS of .763, with 64 doubles, 47 homers and 145 RBI. If he produces like that, in a hitter-friendly stadium, that would be a big upgrade over the black hole that existed at first base last year.
Trading Marcus Stroman is a must
Heading into spring training, the Yankees have a potentially very good rotation fronted by Gerrit Cole and Max Fried, followed by Carlos Rodon, Clarke Schmidt and Luis Gil. If those guys all stayed reasonably healthy and pitched to expectation, you could make the case it’s the best rotation in the American League.
Stroman is No. 6 and the odd man out, and the Yankees - according to reports - have been trying to find a trade partner in the hope that he could bring back an infielder to plug the hole at second or third base, or perhaps an outfielder they can send to left field.
Stroman started well last season, but he slumped in the second half because he simply allowed too many baserunners. His WHIP was horrid at 1.428 because he allowed 9.7 hits and 3.5 walks per nine innings. That’s way too much traffic and it put inordinate stress on a mediocre Yankees defense.
I’m not sure if Stroman has much value as a trade chip, especially since he’s due to make $18.5 million. My guess is the Yankees are trying to make a deal where they would pay a portion of his salary because that’s the only way they can move him. Ultimately, if no deal is made, he comes back and at least provides some depth when the inevitable injuries hit.
What should the infield look like?
I’ve stayed consistent with this thought: move Jazz Chisholm to second base which is his primary position, and go find a third baseman. The first part of that equation is simple; the second, not so much.
I am not in favor of reuniting Nolan Arenado with Goldschmidt, which would have to happen via a trade. Sure, Arenado is still a wonderful fielder, though not the 10-time Gold Glove winner he once was. Still, he can pick it better than anyone the Yankees have had at that position since Alex Rodriguez a decade and a half ago. However, Arenado has declined more as a hitter than Goldschmidt as he hit just 16 home runs and his OPS of .719 was his worst since his rookie season in 2013 with the Rockies. At a cost of $27 million this year and in 2026, that’s not pretty unless the Cardinals are willing to pay some of that to move him.
There are no free agents who move the needle outside of Alex Bregman who will be too pricey for the Yankees, and whose right-handed bat probably would not play favorably at Yankee Stadium. The remaining group features the likes of ex-Yankee Jon Berti, Joan Moncado and Brian Anderson. There has been talk that DJ LeMahieu could be an option at second or third but come on, if that’s what the Yankees are thinking, that’s faulty logic on any level.
If they leave Chisholm at third, the second base market features two players who might be reasonable options. Jorge Polanco was a Twins mainstay and performed well in the postseason before going to Seattle last season where he hit just .213, though his career OPS is a functional .765. And Brendan Rodgers, who was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 draft by the Rockies who never lived up to that status and has a ho-hum .726 OPS in 452 career games.
There have been some rumblings about trading for Luis Arraez of the Padres. He has won the last three NL batting titles and has a .323 career average, but he’s strictly a singles hitter with no speed who is also a negative defender. I don’t see that as a viable option, especially since he’s a lefty hitter where at Yankee Stadium, right fielders can play shallower due to the short porch and some of his line-drive singles might become outs.
In house, the options besides LeMahieu are Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza. No thanks. Cabrera is serviceable as a utility player, but it seems like Peraza is never going to hit. And since he’s now out of options, if he doesn’t make th 26-man roster, he’d have to clear waivers before going back to Triple-A and there could be a few lower level teams who would take a flier on him.
Is the bullpen fully-formed?
No, but it’s getting there. Adding closer Devin Williams was a great move by Brian Cashman because he’s one of the best in baseball, a guy who can be as dominant as anyone. And that also pushes Luke Weaver back where he’s best-suited as a one- or two-inning setup man, a role he excelled in last year.
Another shrewd move might be the acquisition of 34-year-old righty Fernando Cruz who came over from the Reds in the trade that sent Jose Trevino packing. Cruz is a very late bloomer who has a devastating splitter which has helped him average 13.9 strikeouts per nine innings. His career ERA of 4.76 isn’t great, but part of that was pitching for the Reds. He could be a tremendous weapon in high-leverage innings.
Beyond that, there’s plenty of questions. Is Jake Cousins as good as he looked in spurts last year? Is Ian Hamilton good at all because after a promising 2023, he was mediocre and injured in 2024? What about Scott Effross coming off a two-year absence because of Tommy John surgery? Jonathan Loaisiga was re-signed, but will he stay healthy, something that he has never done? And is Mark Leiter even usable, because he really wasn’t very often after coming over from the Cubs?
If Cruz can come through, the Yankees are solid in the seventh, eighth and ninth, but the bridge innings are an issue. There isn’t a single lefty in the bullpen right not, so it’s still possible they re-sign Tim Hill. Same for Tommy Kahnle, whose changeup plays well against lefties. As for young guys from Triple-A, two righties, Clayton Beeter and Yoendrys Gomez, could make a push.
We still have a little more than a month before pitchers and catchers report, so my sense is there will be a couple bullpen moves between now and then.
