I don't like saying this, but I think it's the truth...
Juan Soto will be a New York Met next season. I know, how could I say such a thing.
Unfortunately, it feels like this is the most likely reality. Hal Stienbrenner, and the rest of the Yankees top brass, can not and will not open up their wallets to the level Steve Cohen is willing to go, it's as simple as that.
Maybe Soto has a change of heart, and takes the slightest of discounts to remain in the Bronx, but going off what we've heard from Scott Boras and even Soto, that remains unlikely.
Now that that's out of the way, let's list the rest of the Yankees offseason departures:
Gleyber Torres, Anthony Rizzo, Alex Verdugo, Tommy Kahnle, Jonathan Loaisiga, Lou Trevino
Yes, I also have Gleyber leaving in free agency. Not only did Brian Cashman not extend the $21 million qualifying offer to Torres, he also had this to say when asked about the Venezuelan's future with the team. ""I'm not gonna dissect what he's good at and not as good at. Obviously he'll have a lot of conversations with a lot of teams that have a need in that area and that might include us, who knows. But appreciate his efforts while he was here"
Not exactly a ringing endorsement... besides, the Yankees can easily move Jazz Chisholm over to his more natural position of second base, sign or trade for a third baseman, and help fix that infield defense problem that the Dodgers looked to and did expose.
Trades:
Marcus Stroman and Jose Trevino to CIN for Jeimer Candelario and Emilio Pagan
Nestor Cortes and Emilio Pagan to LAD for Max Muncy
Now the corners of your infield are situated. What I really like about this move is the versatility it gives you, both Muncy and Candelario can play on either corner of the infield, giving you plenty of flexability on those days you want to move the lineup around to make room for a hot hand, or give someone a rest day.
You now have more than a few viable options at both corners of the infield, only problem now is we've traded two starters! Who's going to fill out the rest of the rotation now!
Acquisitions and Retentions: Corbin Burnes (7yr/$245m) $35m AAV, Jurickson Profar (3yr/$45m) $15m AAV, Travis D'Arnaud (2yr/$25m) $12.5m AAV, James Karinchak (1yr/$2m), Clay Holmes (1yr/$8m) w/ club option, Tim Hill (1yr/$950k).
If Soto does in fact leave, I am more than confident the Yankees will aggressively pursue Burnes' services. He had yet another great season this year in Baltimore, and if the last five years of Gerrit Cole tell us anything, it's that paying up for top tier talent in the short term with the possibility of the contract burning you on the back end, is well worth it.
Despite Profar's breakout campaign at 32 years old, FanGraphs (the site I'm using to come up with these contracts) doesn't see any team forking over a relatively huge sum of money who has a whole decade of games and at bats to contradict this past season.
The Yankees now have a huge hole in the outfield and the leadoff spot, so signing a switch hitting bat like Profar who got on base at a .380 clip last season can give Judge, Muncy, and Stanton someone to drive in almost every time they step up to the plate, as well as finally get some offensive production out of the left corner.
I love the idea of signing D'Arnaud, a lefty killer that can allow Austin Wells to get some more rest days or even some reps at first base, while not entirely squandering your offensive production behind the plate.
D'Arnaud has a career .805 OPS against lefties, with a .922 OPS against southpaws just last season. In case you've already drowned out the sorrows of this World Series, the Yankees had Jose Trevino pinch hitting in the bottom of the 9th with bases loaded while down by two runs against the Dodgers. Saying the Yankees need some righty firepower off the bench is an understatement, and D'Arnaud provides exactly that.
Karinchak, despite somewhat of a falloff in recent years, is the exact kind of guy Matt Blake can bring the best out of. Unlike other Blake projects, Karinchak has a previous track record of success, and would probably have the most powerful arm of any Yankee bullpen acquisition since Aroldis Chapman.
Allow Karinchak to take on the lower leverage rolls, let him prove himself, and let's ease him into a higher leverage 7th, 8th inning role and give ourselves a fearsome backend of the bullpen by the time October 2025 comes around.
Without Juan Soto on the Yankees, you can't take the same liberties you did last year building the roster. You can't afford to have six starters on the roster, or lack of options and depth in the lineup.
Give Judge and Stanton some help at the top of the lineup, give yourself a more formidable, more practical defensive alignment, play the hot hands, and lets win some baseball games.
Remember when the Washington Nationals won the World Series immediately after losing Bryce Harper in free agency?