Immediately after that When Juan Soto chose the Mets, Brian Cashman spoke to the media and looked over his roster for areas of need.
The Yankees could look to upgrade at a number of offensive spots to make up for the rank creation they just lost. There is also a possibility that the direction will change to prevent runaway behavior.
“We will strengthen our pitching ability and improve our defensive ability,'' the general manager said. He has been aiming for a more complete team after his top-class club won the American League pennant last season.
The Yankees brought in a hitter with a resume and a pitcher who had some doubts but showed impressive pitching. What do you think of the new defense?
At least on paper, the Yankees are projected as a healthier defensive team, largely because they minus their two biggest flaws in center fielders Aaron Judge and Gleyber Torres (even if they still have the latter). even if it hasn't been replaced).
The biggest difference in the Yankees' defense from 2024 to 2025 should be at center, and while Cody Bellinger isn't the defender he was with the Dodgers, he should be a big step up from Judge.
Last season, Judge ranked him 39th out of 40 eligible center fielders.
He lost a half-step, which was evident with too many balls falling in front of him, and Cashman had indicated to the Yankees that he preferred Judge as a right fielder even before the Bellinger trade.
“He's an above-average athlete, an above-average defender from the get-go, an above-average defender in the outfield,” Cashman said of Bellinger. Bellinger may not be above average at center anymore, but he's still available.
Last year with the Cubs, Bellinger split his playing time between center field and right field on the turf.
Even in his 29-year-old season, his sprint speed was on par with his first seven years in the majors, and he was viewed as a slightly below-average center fielder by most defensive metrics, but for the Yankees. That wasn't the problem. The defensive performance at the spot last season was much worse.
They'll be hoping for that kind of boost at second base after moving on from Torres.
Now a Tiger, he had the most errors by a second baseman in Major League Baseball last season and was one of the worst defensive players at the time (31st out of 37 qualified second basemen). .
Torres continued to suffer from brain spasms, including an ill-timed misplay in Game 1 of the World Series in which he tried to catch a throw from the outfield with a short hop instead of just knocking it down.
The ball went away from him, and Shohei Ohtani advanced from second base to third base.
At this point, Torres' loss of the glove is addition and subtraction.
The most likely replacement would be Jazz Chisholm Jr., who had his best defensive season as a more natural second baseman.
Moving Chisholm would open the door for a free agent or incumbent at No. 3, likely the older but sure-fire DJ LeMahieu.
Whoever throws the ball across the diamond will be shooting to the more reliable first baseman.
The Yankees can no longer rely on the Gold Glove defense of Paul Goldschmidt, who is now 37 years old, but aging is less noticeable at first base.
Of the 40 qualifiers for the position last year, Goldschmidt ranked 16th with an above-average performance. The Yankees' first basemen in 2024 (primarily a declining Anthony Rizzo, a learning Ben Rice, and LeMahieu) were even worse.
At the corner outfield spot, the Yankees have gotten better, but perhaps worse.
Judge is a much better right fielder than Soto, but Alex Verdugo was a proven strong left fielder.
The most likely opening day left fielder at this point is Jason Dominguez, who is faster than Verdugo but looked lost on the spot in September.
Spring training is important for Dominguez, and manager Aaron Boone could flip-flop with Dominguez if he wants Dominguez to remain in the position he pitched in with the Yankees.
Defensively, it's also worth noting that whoever replaces Jose Trevino as backup catcher will be the best pitcher in the Red Army right now, but his replacement will be a stronger pitcher. He is likely to have a pitching arm.
Of the 83 catchers who threw to second base at least five times last season, Trevino had the fourth-worst average ball velocity.
In general, the Yankees' 2025 defense looks better than the 2024 version. Contrary to some public perception, the team's defense wasn't terrible.
The Yankees had the seventh-most lapses in MLB last season, and while they may have been burned in October, their overall glove work is statistically considered slightly better than average.
The Yankees will aim to exceed that standard next season.
“I'm excited,” Boone said last month about the 2025 Yankees. “I think the pivot so far was obviously hurt by missing out on Juan, but… there are different ways to go about it.” [build a team]”
