What Will the Future of the Yankees Infield Look Like After Releasing This Former Batting Champion?
Last week, Aaron Boone announced that Jazz Chisholm Jr. was going to move to second base for the rest of the season after struggling at third base for about a month. Against the Seattle Mariners and Chicago Cubs this past week, the cohesion between the defense proved that this move was a long time coming. However, that move left New York Yankees veteran DJ LeMahieu without a permanent position and, therefore, led to him being designated for assignment. Throughout seven seasons with the Yankees, LeMahieu had a .278 batting average, made one All-Star appearance, and won the AL batting title in 2020. With Chisholm’s move to second and LeMahieu’s departure, the third base position is wide open.
With an open position comes options for the Yankees. If they decide to stick with what they have, Oswald Peraza and Jorbit Vivas are already options on the roster. After making his major league debut in 2022, Peraza has yet to live up to the expectations set for him when he was in the minors. Throughout four seasons with the team, Peraza is batting .195, and is only batting .161 this season so far. Similarly, Vivas hasn’t shown much potential so far, batting .149 with one home run since his debut in May. If the Yankees are okay with sacrificing offense for above-average defense, going with what they have might be the best choice. However, with the offense lacking consistency this season, they might want to take a look at the trade market.
While there’s a chance the Yankees take a risk with what they already have, there have been rumors that the team is interested in trading for Eugenio Suárez. Trading with the Arizona Diamondbacks for Suárez would not only fill the gap in the infield but would also inject much-needed life into the lineup. This season, Suárez is having one of his best offensive showings yet, with 29 home runs so far. While there are certainly some doubts about Suárez’s defensive metrics, what they can see with him offensively would be better than what they have, and will be better than what LeMahieu was giving them.
