Typically, when a team signs a player who is only two years removed from winning an MVP award, there aren't many questions about how that player will play in the near future.
However, there are some questions about how Paul Goldschmidt, who signed a one-year, $12.5 million contract with the Yankees to fill the first base spot in 2025, will fare in the Bronx.
After falling short for the 2022 MVP the following season in St. Louis, Goldschmidt slumped in the first half of last year, but bounced back in the second half of 2024.
What kind of player will the 37-year-old Yankees acquire as they seek to strengthen their batting lineup in various ways following the departure of Juan Soto to the Mets as a free agent?
“I haven't played well most of this year. There's no excuse for that,” Goldschmidt said on a Zoom call Thursday.
He had a poor start, posting a .592 OPS as of May 20, and was unable to crack .700 until late August, as he was pitched differently than he was early in his career. He claimed it was his fault.
“I was proven wrong,” Goldschmidt said. “I just didn't hit the pitches that I was able to connect with for most of my career.”
Goldschmidt didn't go into too many specifics, but said the first baseman has made changes to both his swing and his approach at the plate to get a better swing position.
Some results were promising, including a .774 OPS in 117 games since May 12 and an .842 OPS in the final 43 games of the season.
“Something was a little different and I developed some bad habits,” Goldschmidt said. “It took me a while to get back in a good position to hit it…it took me longer than ever to get back in position.”
The Yankees lost Soto and Gleyber Torres from last year's lineup and have replaced them with Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger so far, so expect these changes to stick.
Goldschmidt said he watched the Soto sweepstakes and was asked what this year's lineup looks like at this point in the offseason.
“We're going to figure it out,” Goldschmidt said. “We definitely have the talent. Expectations are high…This team was in the World Series last year and came very close to winning it.”
They got there largely because of Soto's dominance and Aaron Judge in the regular season.
Where the Yankees didn't have much success was at first base. Thanks to the efforts of Anthony Rizzo, DJ LeMahieu, and Ben Rice, they posted the lowest OPS in the majors from the spot.
A recovery season for right-handed Goldschmidt and left-handed Bellinger, along with the additions to the pitching staff of left-hander Max Fried and closer Devin Williams, should go a long way in getting the Yankees back into the league. top of the American League.
But as they saw with Rizzo, relying on the resurgence of players past their 30s can be dangerous.
But unlike Rizzo, Goldschmidt has remained healthy at this point in his career. And some of his recent advanced metrics indicate he had some bad luck last season.
He thinks he'll be No. 1 in 2025, and Bellinger could move there from the outfield next season, but Goldschmidt isn't ruling anything out.
“I don't know how long I want to play,” Goldschmidt said. “I want to play at a high level. It's frustrating not to be able to play well.”
And even when he was struggling a year ago, Goldschmidt believed he still had time.
“I still felt like, 'Hey, hey, I'm better than this,'” Goldschmidt said. “That's how I felt last year, but I have to prove it. If I don't perform, I don't play.”
That's especially true for teams expected to win.
Goldschmidt, a seven-time All-Star and solid defender, has never made it past the LDS in the postseason and his “top priority” as he searches for a new team in his first foray into free agency is winning a World Cup. The series said it was an opportunity to do so.
A return to 2022 form, or something close to it, could help Goldschmidt and the Yankees get there.
