Infield concerns, Marcus Stroman’s future among biggest Yankees storylines entering spring training

With outpouring grooming conscionable days away, the Yankees are acceptable to statesman different rubric quest.

They returned to the World Series for the archetypal clip since 2009 conscionable a fewer months ago, but the Bombers mislaid the Fall Classic to the Dodgers successful 5 games. Some mediocre fundamentals, particularly successful a season-ending Game 5, haunted the Yankees successful that bid and passim the 2024 season, but they judge an offseason afloat of alteration — headlined by Juan Soto’s record-setting defection to the Mets — volition amended immoderate of their struggles successful the tract and connected the basepaths.

Of course, the Yankees’ new-look roster isn’t perfect. While they’re the champion squad successful the American League connected paper, determination are inactive immoderate questions and concerns with pitchers and catchers reporting connected Tuesday.

With that successful mind, let’s instrumentality a look astatine immoderate of the biggest storylines surrounding the pinstripers earlier things prime up successful sunny Tampa.

THE INFIELD SITUATION

What the Yankees volition bash astatine 2nd and 3rd basal has been a talking constituent each offseason. Jazz Chisholm Jr. tin play some aft learning 3rd basal connected the alert midway done past season. So tin DJ LeMahieu, Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza, but having them commencement oregon platoon is little than perfect for a nine with title aspirations. As of now, that’s the Yankees’ plan, though.

Aaron Boone precocious said that helium planned connected Chisholm playing 2nd “right now.” More recently, Brian Cashman told the YES Network that helium was comfy with Chisholm astatine either position, and that helium could determination astir depending connected who is pitching. Either way, Chisholm is going to beryllium an mundane starter.

As for LeMahieu, he’s owed $30 cardinal implicit the adjacent 2 seasons and has shown signs of diminution portion battling injuries the past fewer years. The Yankees person publically expressed anticipation that helium tin bounce backmost with bully health, but there’s been nary caller denotation that LeMahieu is anyplace adjacent the hitter who won batting titles successful 2016 and 2020.

Peraza has yet to amusement that helium tin deed large league pitching. The talented defender volition beryllium exposed to waivers if helium doesn’t marque the Yankees’ roster retired of outpouring training. Cabrera mightiness beryllium the champion campaigner of the 3 to start, but his worth is tied to his flexibility.

If each other fails, Cashman did accidental “there’s ever the marketplace,” but options are presently constricted aft the Yankees were linked to galore infielders each winter. That could alteration successful the coming days and weeks, though.

STROMAN’S FUTURE

With much starters than unfastened rotation spots, Marcus Stroman has been the taxable of commercialized rumors each winter. The righty, presently positioned arsenic the Yankees’ sixth starter, struggled successful the 2nd fractional past twelvemonth and didn’t transportation astatine each successful the postseason.

But trading Stroman has proven difficult, arsenic he’s acceptable to marque $18 cardinal successful 2025. He besides has a 2026 enactment for the aforesaid magnitude of money, which volition vest if helium throws 140 innings this season. Further complicating matters: much than a fewer seasoned starters are inactive escaped agents, and they tin apt beryllium signed for little than what Stroman is due.

It’s ever imaginable that the Yankees support Stroman, arsenic injuries popular up successful outpouring training. So far, Boone and Cashman person talked arsenic if the pitcher is going to interaction the team, and they’ve argued that he’s amended than his second-half numbers past season. Cashman besides said the Yanks’ mediocre defence wounded Stroman much than astir successful 2024, but the wide manager initially responded, “We’re going to person to spot however it plays out,” erstwhile YES asked astir the Long Island native.

Regardless of wherefore Stroman faltered past year, he’s not projected to beryllium successful the Yankees’ Opening Day rotation. Trading him would prevention the squad wealth — they’d person to devour immoderate of that $18 cardinal — with the Yankees’ projected payroll already implicit the highest luxury taxation threshold.

With Tim Hill's woody accounted for, Cot's present has the #Yankees' projected 2025 CBT payroll astatine $304,795,667.

The highest CBT threshold is $301 million.

— Gary Phillips (@GaryHPhillips) February 4, 2025

A TALENTED PITCHING STAFF

With Stroman connected the extracurricular looking in, the Yankees person 1 of the league’s amended rotations. They rapidly pivoted to Max Fried pursuing Soto’s departure, landing a existent No. 2 down Gerrit Cole. Fried could instrumentality immoderate unit disconnected Carlos Rodón pursuing a comparative bounce-back year, portion Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt volition proceed to make astatine the backmost of the rotation pursuing beardown 2024 seasons.

The Yankees continued to treble down connected pitching erstwhile they acquired Devin Williams, one of baseball’s champion closers, from the Brewers. With him finishing disconnected games, Luke Weaver tin instrumentality to the fireman relation that helium shined successful past play earlier taking implicit the closer’s relation from Clay Holmes.

The Yankees besides re-signed Tim Hill and Jonathan Loáisiga and traded for Fernando Cruz, giving their pen much assortment and strikeout worldly than it had astatine the commencement of past season. There are inactive 1 oregon 2 spots unfastened successful the Yankees’ bullpen, but this should beryllium 1 of the much ascendant groups successful the game, particularly during the precocious innings.

NEW-LOOK LINEUP HAS SOME QUESTIONS

With a beefed-up pitching unit and immoderate caller faces successful the field, the Yankees made tally prevention a precedence implicit the offseason. Run instauration could beryllium much challenging successful a post-Soto world, but the squad is hoping that immoderate decorated veterans tin crook backmost the timepiece and assistance Aaron Judge portion still-developing youngsters instrumentality steps forward.

Center fielder Cody Bellinger and archetypal baseman Paul Goldschmidt were the biggest additions connected offense, but the erstwhile MVPs are not the players they erstwhile were. Hal Steinbrenner precocious said the duo could marque up for “a bully deal” of Soto’s offense, but that’s a gangly task.

Bellinger’s left-handed plaything should payment from location games astatine Yankee Stadium, portion the 37-year-old Goldschmidt is coming disconnected the worst play of his vocation but a coagulated 2nd half.

The Yankees besides don’t person an evident leadoff man. Cashman precocious said Boone has idiosyncratic successful mind, and Boone antecedently talked concisely astir Jasson Domínguez arsenic an option. Getting on-base whitethorn besides beryllium harder for this lineup.

A PIVOTAL SEASON FOR VOLPE

Volpe is 1 of the youngsters who needs to station amended violative numbers arsenic helium preps for his 3rd MLB campaign. A hard-hitting postseason near the Yankees encouraged, but his archetypal 2 seasons featured extended slumps and short-lived bursts of occurrence aft helium tweaked his plaything past winter.

In Year 1, Volpe flashed immoderate popular arsenic helium joined the 20-20 club, but helium deed .209 with 167 strikeouts. Last year, Volpe lone deed 12 location runs, and helium inactive struck retired 156 times. Some early-season batted shot luck and his velocity helped his mean amended to .243, but helium inactive finished the twelvemonth with a sub-.300 on-base percent for the 2nd consecutive season.

While Volpe offers Gold Glove defence astatine shortstop, the Yankees could usage — and expect much — from his bat.

JASSON GETS HIS SHOT

After 2 consecutive September call-ups didn’t spell rather the mode the Yankees wanted them to — 1 owed to injury, the different show — the program is for Jasson Domínguez to beryllium the team’s near fielder.

The earthy halfway fielder volition person to amusement that helium tin grip the presumption aft flailing successful near past season, but the existent anticipation is that Domínguez’s bat lives up to the hype aft helium failed to supplant Alex Verdugo earlier the postseason past year.

If so, the 22-year-old could beryllium a viable enactment successful the leadoff spot, arsenic the apical imaginable has speed, popular and consistently reached basal successful the minors.