It’s been a tough few days on the injury front for Yankees fans. After the club announced yesterday that right-hander Luis Gil is set to undergo an MRI due to shoulder troubles and not long after it was made public that slugger Giancarlo Stanton will begin the season on the injured list due to soreness in both elbows, another potentially key player for the club went down with a potential injury: veteran infielder DJ LeMahieu.
As noted by MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch, manager Aaron Boone told reporters this afternoon that LeMahieu “tweaked” a calf muscle during his second at-bat during today’s game, which was LeMahieu’s spring debut. LeMahieu is receiving treatment for the issue, but Boone called the situation “at least a little concerning” given the veteran’s recent injury history. LeMahieu was limited to just 67 games due to a number of injuries last year, including a hip impingement that ultimately ended his season.
It’s a particularly troubling development seeing as LeMahieu was a likely candidate to be the club’s starting third baseman on Opening Day. A recent MLBTR Poll suggested that 27.5% of respondents expected LeMahieu to receive the lion’s share of playing time at third base this year. That was enough to beat out both Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza as the top internal candidate for the job, though a 34% plurality of respondents suggested that the Yankees’ primary solution at the hot corner was likely to be someone not yet in the organization.
Perhaps today’s injury will make that more likely if LeMahieu winds up unable to get back in time for the beginning of the season later this month, though the pickings remain quite slim on the market with part-time veteran Jose Iglesias standing out as the best infield option still available. If the Yankees can’t find an external solution for the hot corner before Opening Day, it seems likely that Cabrera and Peraza will handle the position in a timeshare until LeMahieu is ready to return, though it’s possible a player such as Jorbit Vivas or Pablo Reyes could make a push for the job as well.
Aside from the news regarding LeMahieu, Hoch suggests that the injury to Stanton could lead to a realigned outfield with Trent Grisham joining the lineup in center field, with Cody Bellinger sliding from center to right field and Aaron Judge moving to DH. Such an arrangement would improve the club’s defense overall by adding a plus glove in center field while also avoiding injury risks for Judge, the reigning AL MVP who stands out as the club’s most important player entering the year. Hoch adds that Boone noted that giving Judge occasional partial days off at DH could be valuable early in the season, though Boone was quick to emphasize that he also values Judge’s ability to contribute on defense in right field. On days where Grisham isn’t joining the lineup in center field and pushing a regular to DH, the club’s internal options to fill in for Stanton include youngster Ben Rice and non-roster invitee Dominic Smith.
Sticking with Judge, the MVP spoke to reporters (including Hoch) this afternoon about his desire to get more at-bats under his belt during Spring Training this year. Today was Judge’s first appearance in a Spring Training game of the year, and notably he received just 24 official at-bats in the spring last season. Judge suggested that additional reps before the season begins could help him to prevent a slow start like the one he had last year, where he batted just .197/.331/.393 in his first 149 trips to the plate before turning his season around in early May and hitting a sensational .357/.492/.787 the rest of the way. Obviously, that type of otherworldly production over the majority of the season would be more than enough to make up for another early-season slump, but Judge’s goal of getting something closer to 40 or 50 plate appearances in this spring is an understandable one given his struggles early last year.
300M payroll and we have no starting 3B, no backup catcher, a 37 year old stop gap at 1B and a DH who gets hurt brushing his teeth.
I’m honestly not a fan of how this team is constructed right now at all.
@YanksPhan High payrolls don’t alleviate all weaknesses, but they do allow you to shop in the off season deep end.
The rotation is mostly purchased and top 5. It’s not like they are doomed because DJL and Stanton are overpaid and chronically injured.
WRONG! Look at a team like CLE who we met in the playoffs with a third of our payroll. Look at a team like the Rays who compete yearly on a shoe string budget. Look at KC who had a great team this year on a third of our budget. It’s called being a good GM and making great decisions instead of just throwing money at problems.
I’m also still salty on the Max Fried signing. Why throw that many years for a guy who can’t stay healthy and gets shelled in the playoffs? Especially when a work horse Gerrit Cole clone named Corbin Burnes is still out there! DUMB.
@Yanks
You’re comparing teams that have a brief widow of opportunity and relevance to a team tasked with being in the WS every year? Both teams you mentioned past in the week Central division. In their last 25 years, the Royals have won over 86 games in a season once. They win 95 games and the WS. That was their brief window. They have the luxury of tanking to rebuild, and by choice or circumstance, they end up in a high draft position where they can draft a guy like Bobby Witt. Don’t ever compare those teams to the Yanks. It’s a bad comp.
Btw: Max Fried pitched a 6 inning shutout in game 6 to win a WS.
Max Fried has a 5.10 career post season ERA…..and in his last 31 innings, he’s given up 25 earned runs. That’s NOT the guy who you should shower with money to get you far in the playoffs…..obviously.
Also, KC won 86 games last year and the Yankees won 94 with 3 TIMES the payroll. NO…..200 million MORE isn’t worth 8 wins. KC was just an example of many you can use if you actually understand both the game and economics. CLE is another and they DO compete yearly.
You can not compare teams that occasionally go to the playoff to teams who are there every year. You can have a good young team for a year or2’ but then they will want to get paid ( and I don’t blame them ). That’s when shoestring budget teams rebuild., but the Yankees pay up and continually play into Oct.
@Yanks
There’s a price you pay for sustained excellence. Let’s be clear, if the Yanks don’t make the playoffs, then their fan base and media will be screaming for ppl to be fired. If KC or Cleveland don’t make the playoffs, fans will be disappointed by their expectations are nowhere on the same page as the Yanks. You can’t compare a team that had the leash to tank for 8 years vs. the one trying to win a WS every year. It’s extremely difficult to compete every year just by drafting. Just the retention of your own players can cost you. You know how dumb you sound to compare the Royals to the Yanks? KC won 86 games in a much weaker division. The Yanks won 95 in the most competitive AL division. And the Yanks whooped the Royals, so I’m not sure it’s even a comparison worth making.
And you can sit there and Monday morning qb a deal that didn’t get fine but we all know how Boras operates. I’m sure the Yanks likely put ac similar offer out to Burnes back in late November early December. Many teams did. But Boras typically drags out the prices and didn’t end up signing until Dec 28. By that time Fried might have been off the board so Cashman, knowing he had a bunch of good to fill age aggressively and I dint have a problem with it. I think Fried is a great pitcher and regardless, he DID win the clinching game of a WS series by pitching 6 shutout innings. Some of my fellow Yankee fans seem to act like it’s a one-way street when it comes to player acquisition. Spoiled and entitled fans. Go ahead and think the Royals are a better organization. They were a 58 win team win they were awarded the #1 overall pick. Yanks don’t have the luxury to be that bad to get a player like that. They have to do a superior job at dressing at the end of each round, they lost their 1st round pick when they sign top FA. It’s not comparable
…..and that’s a Yankees FLAW. Would you rather them win a World Series, reload and then win another a few years later…..or “compete” for one yearly….aka, be just good enough to get to the playoffs, but too flawed to win it. It’s the reason WHY we haven’t won since 2009! Sometime you need to step back to step forward.
@YanksPhan How are you comparing AL Central teams to one that has not experience a losing season in over a generation? Expectations are night and day.
When a mid market GM has a winning season, it’s all accolades. When they finish with 75 wins, they are hardly ridiculed. Sustained excellence requires greater risk. It’s not like the 300 mil is split evenly among 25 players.
Fried has been elite when healthy and YSIII requires tough lefties to mitigate the short porch. He hasn’t pitched a single inning in pinstripes and you’ve already deemed it a nightmare signing. And Burnes seemed pretty happy to go home and pitch in Arizona- these aren’t robots, but humans with many factors in their decisions.
You sound like a petulant child. An irony allowed by being a YanksPhan. You can certainly start rooting for the Royals or Indians if hating on the Yankees is your preference.
You’re an idiot. It’s not being a “petulant child” to be a life long fan but not like the current roster construction. It’s called having a baseball IQ and understanding the game. Still love my team and will watch every game….but don’t care for the roster construction. I’ll take that over being a blind homer like you any day.
@Yanks
Dude the very reason the Yanks are good enough to COMPETE, not meaning just make a wild card spot, is negate they retain their start players. You can’t give Judge and Cole $500 mil combined and then throw away a season. Yes, eventually they might need a retooling drain or two but that’s not now. Yanks are in win now mode. They absolutely could’ve win last season vs the Dodgers but key players underperformed. That’s not on the coach or GM. This year is absolutely dependent on health but if healthy andour to the WS I like a 4 Some of Cole, Fried, Gil and Rodon with a closer like Williams. The lineup is talented but you have to hope the kids can continue to progress. I like bringing in season vets to take a bit of the pressure off of Judge. Belly has won a chip. Goldy seems to have a good report with Judge. I like our chances. But stop the dumb comparisons to the Royals. They barely got into the playoffs with 86 and and we’re knocked out in the 1st round. They might not even make the playoffs next season. 86 eine would be a horrible season for the Yanks.
I do t know much, but they can live with Peraza at third (probably a better choice than DJLM) with rice as a back up 1st and catcher, Cabrera as the utility fielder. And you can carry JC as a back up catcher as well with dom the additional bench piece.
As currently constituted, the Yanks are an 85 win team, and that’s being generous. They’re crying poverty, yet Paul DeJong, a plus defender who hit 24 dingers last year, could have been signed for $1.5 million. No quality secondary lefty in the pen, and Andrew Chafin could have been obtained on a minor league contract. Whatever the plan is, it doesn’t seem to be about winning another pennant.
I agree on Paul DeJong but you missed your mark on Chaffin.
Chaffin has a farm right outside of Detroit, hence why this is Chaffin’s third stint in Detroit. His contract is also 4+ million with incentives. The whole minor league agreement is most likely a formality because he signed a couple weeks after spring training started and may not be ready to go opening day. The minor league deal is only to allow him extra time to get ready and not force the Tigers to be a man down on the 26 man roster.
I get that every team has their own set budget but it blows my mind that the Yankees were not in on Bregman. I cannot imagine a scenario when Hank was alive that he would tolerate the current state of the Yankees. I love the Max Fried deal, love Bellinger, Goldie not so much.
@Drascoo366 – Thanks for the insight – I didn’t know that about Chaffin, but he’d been on my radar for the last couple of seasons.
I’ll take the over on your 85-win team bet Rudy.
I agree that the yankees may have been able to upgrade a little more but pitching wise they have about 25 pitchers with mlb experience I’m ok with a 2nd lefty being Rob Zastryzny of tyler matzek. After all the 2nd lefty will be stashed in AAA. 3b,2b and LF are the issues Jazz obviously plays 1. And cabrera could be another. Between peraza, peirera, DjL and Dominic smith I wish they brought in someone that could play all 3 in a pinch like a Kiki hernandez or brandon Drury type that could play 2nd or 3rd but also bump to the outfield until the young in-house options are ready to play every day
While Rudy and Drasco lament about Paul DeJong, who along with the 24 dingers hit a robust .227 which is pretty much par for him, with pretty much league average defense and a resume that has him mostly playing 2nd and SS. Even the Nationals went bargain basement diving when they signed him so lamenting about how he might compare to in-house Yankee options who don’t cost anything and assuming he’s going to bring his 24 power to the Bronx is a bit of a stretch…..he certainly isn’t regarded as a “power guy”.
Secondly, the Yankees are always able to navigate finding bullpen arms that are effective, serviceable and cheap.
@dmac
I don’t know why they’re insisting on Martian playing in KF but I think he’ll be fine.
I think it’s because he doesn’t track the ball correctly. Maybe left is better than CF in yankee stadium to learn
@Rudy
The loss of Soto will certainly be felt, but they improved 1b as Goldy should be better than Rizzo and Belli better than Verdugo. The Marian is a wild card tho I can’t understand why they are pushing him to play LF and not CF. A healthy Cole and Schmidt to go along with Rodon and Fried could be above average. Gil’s health is an obvious concern. Williams over Holmes should be a huge win, plus a full year of Weaver should help.
O’s should take a step back with no Burns or Santander. The Sox might be more formidable, but are they going to be a 90+ win team?. Have the Rays or Jay’s done anything to help them drastically impetus from being 70-80 win teams?
A tremendous amount of things would have to go wrong for the Yanks, but to be a 93+ win team seems pretty likely.
Sounds like the Mets
Honestly, though, extending Boone was probably the worst move in my opinion
GMs like managers who do what they tell them.
The only thing worse would be extending Cashman.
Boone’s a yes man.
Yankees will do anything for aging superstars to be in their lineups and drive up revenue.
Only reason they hired Boone was 2003
Not to mention a lackluster farm, but they could find a way to win some games, they still have a nice rotation, Stroman isn’t as bad as all the Yankees fans have made him out to be.
You had to know that Stanton was going to the rack at some point. They really need a big rookie campaign from Jasson Dominguez.
I personally like Boston to the win the East, liked them to win the division before adding Bregman, mostly on the strength of their pitching and their farm, but the Yankees still look formidable to me, Bellinger is a really good player, and Goldschmidt could have another big season in his career.
bwmiller the problem with Stroman is he’s good the first half of the season and fades quickly the second half. If Gil’s injury isn’t bad then they are in good shape but Stroman can’t be counted on as the season goes on.
The Chase Hampton injury takes a card out of the Yankees hand, he was potentially on track to start some games this summer. They are a little thin on the back end of the rotation. A Max Fried flare up is likely too, I’d count on Fried missing a month at some point. I thought Hampton was good to back up what they had in their six man group but now it’s all looking a little shaky. They have to be in the market for a SP.
While he didn’t show much last year, Warren has looked good this ST and Shlittler (hope I spelled that right) has also looked good.
@Yanks
We knew walking in to ST it would be a sonorous for 3b. Back up C isn’t a big deal. We can choose from the in- house guys they have. Goldy at 1b because they want to see what Rice could do in a full season at AAA. Also, I think they wanted to have flexibly in case Vlad or Arraez are avail next winter
dont forget the defensive hole in left field.
The injury is far less concerning than his steep decline in performance. But, they’ll put him in the starting lineup in the postseason anyway.
This guy’s assuming the Yankees will trot into the postseason on day 1. They probably will get there, but it’s premature
Don’t you just love when big spending teams end up choking on stupid contracts?
Dbacks about to do that with Burnes.
whats wrong with burns?i watched him pitch with baltimore last year, he seemed fine.probably a better contract than freed.
sufferforsnakes: Yasmany Tomas, Jordan Montgomery, and Eugenio Suarez have all been good for a few chuckles.
Eduardo Rodriguez
Not really.
@Suffer
You say this, but yet, with Stanton, DJ and Stroman the Yanks were in the WS and had it not been from underperforming stars, could’ve won last year. So let’s stop acting like these contracts are holding us back.
And if not for a lack of wings, pigs might fly.
If Cabrera and/or Peraza can’t play 3b, then why are they on the team?
Cabrera can handle 3B. Cabrera is on the team because he play all 4 Infield positions as well as the Outfield corners. Peraza has not shown he can hit MLB pitching but has some defensive versatility as well
When Dom Smith is with you in Spring Training, even as an NRI, something’s wrong with your front office.
The Yankees will do infinitely better putting Cabrera at 1B rather than Smith, whose upside is replacement level. Give Trent Grisham a 1Bman’s glove. Or do the same with Jose Iglesias. Anyone but Smith.
It’s incredible that in 2024 the Red Sox gave Smith something like 280 PA. Talk about mailing it in.
Grisham’s only value is with a glove and that’s an outfielder’s glove. If he has a bat in his hands he’s hurting his own team. Putting him at first allows him to hurt you in multiple ways; by not doing what he actually can do, by asking him to do something he absolutely cannot do at a premium hit position, and by taking at bats away from someone who conceivably might be able to it.
Who is playing 2B for the Yankees? I thought that was Cabrera. I guess Cabrera could play 3B and Peraza, Vivas or Reyes could play 2B.
@all
Jazz is returning back to 2b.
LeMahieu’s legs are shot. He’s just going to have one nagging lower body injury after another. The legs never are the same once you hit a certain age. And he has reached that point.
This is why I chose Peraza for the poll the other day. DJLM may get the expensive veteran preference but he will be too injured to have the most playing time for any position
Might be time for the Yankees to consider bringing Verdugo back. Iglesias would be a solid addition and has enough defensive flexibility to move around the Infield if/when LeMahieu is healthy
We have more than enough OF depth. We have no need for Verdugo, who couldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat. Would love to add Iglesias though
Verdugo is a career .272 hitter, not eye-popping numbers but not so easy to find a replacement. Yankees do have a need for a .280 hitter. I doubt Peraza, Peirera or Cabrera sniff .280 this season.
@bwmiller That would be great, but he looked lost at the plate last year, which is what I’m basing my opinion off of
bwmiller – You’re forgetting Dugie’s career OPSwB (On Base Percentage Plus Slugging Percentage with Beard) is .770 which is 124 points higher than his OPSwHF (On Base Percentage Plus Slugging Percentage with Hairless Face).
Therefore analytics prove he will perform much better if he joins the Yankees this year.
Love the Jasson Dominguez highlights, so hope he stays in LF!
Dominguez will be sacrificed for a badly needed 3rd baseman. Cashman has no love for him — plus it’s easier to find an extra outfielder than a serviceable 3rd sacker.
i don’t know how big a sacrifice it is to give up Dominguez. He has been severely over hyped
Naaa. He will be good
@John
he hasn’t had a chance to play on a regular bases. How can you call him overrated? He’s only 22. If he didn’t need surgery on his arm he would’ve been a starter last year.
Better get used to the Martian. He’s here to stay.
The Yankees need to stop trying to patch holes with aging, injury-prone players and instead commit to a legitimate youth movement—not just prospects for trade bait, but real succession planning.
Agreed. And just accept the results of giving 1B to their best young player who can handle the position and live with their judgment rather than give a pointless, 30 yo retread with no upside like Dom Smith a couple hundred PA at the position.
JackStraw (awesome song btw) the Yankees just don’t have a young first baseman. Rice is about it and he’s a catcher. My guess is he will be a backup at both positions. Goldy will be fine for this year and there are several FAs next year to be had cheaply enough. They have had Lombard playing third in ST and if all goes well he could be up next year. Paraza should be ok for now. Smith will only be around if he is playing well and let go after Stanton gets back regardless.
Peraza has no business being on a supposed championship caliper team.
Whoa, give us a championship caliper brake.
@Joe
Who says The can’t be an mlb 1b? It’s not exactly a tough position to become adequate if his bat is real.
@Hitter
defensively both Oswalds can handle 3b. Neither had enough ABs to show what they can do but they reach had good sessions in the minors coming up.
@old
It truly is insane some of the things ppl say.
C, SS, 2B, LF all under 25.
3b they can go with Cabrera.
CF-Belli is only 29.
Goldy is a 1 year stop gap until they see if Rice can handle it or they make a run at Vlad or maybe Arraez next year.
They have Spencer Jones who will be at AAA. He needs to prove himself but of he cuts down on his KS then maybe he’ll be ready in 2026?
Please stop acting like these are the old Yanks. Bringing in a stop gap until you find a more permanent solution is what every organization does when necessary.
Marcus Stroman rejoices and gets to be a starter. What a team player.
Nolan Arenado
Too old and hugely overpriced. Arenado is Donaldson 2.0 but with three guaranteed seasons, not just one.
The value of Arenado will only increase to the point the cards keep him. Fafo.
This team is very Fragile
The Yankees are going to go a far as their pitching take them.
They just need to retool that farm system and if that means losing for a few years so be it.
Could Yankees trade Pereira, Peraza, and Warren to the Pirates for Hayes to play 3B? I would even consider Dominez. However, the more he plays, his value gets much lower. The Yankees have a difficult time evaluating the top prospects. They keep players to longgggg like Andujar and Frazier.
Hayes is injury prone and is not known for his offensive prowess. Might as well keep the
Youngins
What on Earth??? Hayes is not worth that much. He isn’t that good and is injury prone. Why would we want that at all?!
You must be demented to suggest that trade. Hayes isn’t worth his contract so if the Pirates offered him for nothing it would be a bad trade.
@mlb
You’ve been overtaking critical of Andujar. He had a great role season, missed the next year to intro, and didn’t come back anywhere near the same. What do you expect the Yankees to do? Trade him after a successful age 23 rookie season where he hits 47 dbls, 27 herself and a .855 OPS year? You make a lot of suggestions after the fact. I like Hayes and think he just need a change of scenery but he should be available for less than what you suggest and certainly not Martian. I just wish they would let him play CF and not damage his confidence. It’s not like Belli can’t slide over and cover LF.
The fact that djl and Stanton are 2 of higher paid players but yet are too lazy to keep themselves in shape to be ready for the season shows that the Yankees have their priorities wrong.
Stanton’s injury is not due to being out of shape; it is just the opposite.
Tennis elbow-like effects come from too much weightlifting, which we can deduce because it is both elbows and not his dominant elbow.
Vey true….but in addition, his injury also is most probably due to a Max swing with all that muscle power behind it each and every time……
The Yankees will probably be successful this season, but I think Cashman is getting way too much praise for his offseason. If Dominguez doesn’t break out in a serious way, the Yankees long term outlook is not great. Volpe hasn’t really become the player everyone expected. They do a nice job of developing pitchers, but they continue to spend huge sums on free agent pitchers. It doesn’t really make sense. I can’t tell if Cashman is just really clueless about how to assemble a team, or if he is such a slave to the PR aspects of “winning” the offseason, he expensive, shortsighted mistakes.
Don….agreed that somehow the Yankees always find a way to be in the mix and probably are a lock for a playoff spot unless we see a total collapse or a Mash unit list of injuries….but disagree about Volpe….the NY media has a penchant for putting unrealistic expectations on a new and young player which is the case in Volpe…..a GG shortstop…taking over for Jeter, and expectations that along with GG defense, he’s going to hit .300, bash 25+ home runs, and hit leadoff…..every season……I can think of 25 teams that would take him in a heartbeat just as is…..he’s young enough to grow offensively so we should be happy with what we have and let the rest happen over time….Beyond, I also agree about using internal pitching resources over continually going after the big free agent….and Rodon with all his failings, is a great example…..
Rocky….I agree that the media put too much expectation on Volpe. His defense is legit but I think the team has to have some internal concerns about the way his offense began trending last season.
Rodon is exactly the guy I was thinking about. But I’m not sure Fried is going to be worth the money either. He is a fine pitcher, but I think he’s also a guy who’s production they could replicate internally at a much lower cost.
If the Yankees plan to operate within some kind of budget, they’re going to have to find a way to incorporate more young players. Trying to fill every hole through free agency is going to produce more fragile, top-heavy rosters like the one they have this season.
Winning the off season sells tickets. Promoting from within, not so much. When I watch Yankee home games, I see lots of empty seats in the prime sections. Maybe they are sold, just no one decide to come. At their prices, it could also be they lost their luster.
I think the people in the expensive seats behind home plate are often inside at the all-you-can-eat buffet watching the game on TV.
Yankees improve their team quite a bit if LeMahieu and Stanton are injured for most of the season. They were a combined minus 0.9 War last year. A broom in a Yankees hat could perform better.
Cashman only looks for the shiny homerun hitters and the star starting pitcher on the open market.
Then he fill the roster on with old worn out players that are oft injured.
He has no development plan and really has only brought Aaron Judge thru the system that he’s controlled recently.
Of course some may say he raised Volpe and Wells up thru the system but if you ask me they are both average players at this point
The Yankees are built to win their division and thats their goal every year, with the hope that they can find a gem at the deadline and the playoffs are a gamble for every team.
The problem is that if the Dodgers can stay healthy, the no one is getting past them.
Cashman will always have a job and his excuse will be ” well we made it this far”
That is apparently good enough for ownership.
Nothing wrong with a prospect becoming an average player. Every team needs a few.
The Yankees have lost their luster throughout MLB and have lost hundreds of thousands of fans world wide. Non baseball fans that just want to seem hip don’t buy Yankee merch any more. They are buying Dodger gear. You trolls can say it doesn’t matter but it does. Look it up
Merchandise revenue is shared.
Kinda hurts the brand though
I feel bad for the Cubs. They don’t win enough to warrant buying their gear, and they need another half century of losing before it’ll seem cool to support them again.
Not the unlicensed, counterfeit stuff that sells big in China, India, and especially Manhattan.
The Cubs will always have their D list loser celebrities wearing their garbage like that Smashing Pumpkin monster and Bill Murray
I know but the last remnants of bandwagon Cubs fans just seem lame. Jeez, how long before Bill Murray is cool again?
One million fans!
I’m not good with the Grisham alignment the dude sucks as a hitter. My preference is rice gets steady at bats between DH and backup catcher, VS strong LHP we rotate rice out. Spread the extra DH at bats between judge and wells.
MLBTR trying hard to block out any Pete Rose comments
At least you should be grateful it isn’t a NBA article. You cannot have it both ways, Ryan, sorry.
Very sorry to say this because I respect DJ immensely, but it is addition by subtraction for the team at this point and he should retire.
Ryan… I agree but could u leave 30 mil on table
The only thing keeping NY from the WS is the Orioles fulfilling their potential.
You can not compare teams that occasionally go to the playoff to teams who are there every year. You can have a good young team for a year or2’ but then they will want to get paid ( and I don’t blame them ). That’s when shoestring budget teams rebuild., but the Yankees pay up and continually play into Oct.