The New York Yankees have regularly used DJ LeMahieu at second base and Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the hot corner. However, it could be time for a change. LeMahieu has a.658 OPS, but Chisholm is a stronger defender at second base than in the hot corner. The Yankees may improve their bench by removing LeMahieu from the regular starting lineup and adding a starter third baseman. According to ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan, the Yankees are interested in trading for St. Louis Cardinals’ Nolan Arenado.
Arenado started the season strong, but he is presently hitting.251 with a.718 OPS. While he is not as good as he once was, he still plays excellent defense and would be a better offensive option than LeMahieu. Arenado is perhaps the best third baseman in our generation. He has eight All-Star appearances, five Silver Slugger awards, ten Gold Gloves, and six Platinum Gloves. He has more than two years left on his eight-year, $260 million contract. A defense with Chisholm back at second base and Arenado at the hot corner would be far superior to the Yankees’ current setup. Furthermore, LeMahieu would be on the bench, making Aaron Boone a stronger choice than Oswald Peraza.
While a deal for Arenado could help the Yankees’ infield, it would be difficult to pull off. Arenado has a full no-trade clause, and the Yankees were not on his original list of offseason teams for which he would be ready to waive it.
Leave a Reply