The Yankees are, like all of MLB at this point, locked in an epic struggle for one of the great talents to ever hit the free-agent market, slugger Juan Soto. Competition is fierce. Considering Soto’s age–he’s 26–the signing is going to be massively expensive for whomever wins the sweepstakes.
But the team must be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. And part of the offseason process here in November is girding yourself against the Rule 5 draft, something the Yankees had to do this week. To make that happen, they took a key step on a young player who has been creating a good deal of buzz in the organization in recent months.
In fact, the team likes 24-year-old 5-foot-6 infielder Caleb Durbin enough that there has been talk about him being a starter at second base at some point next season, with GM Brian Cashman mentioning him as an “internal option” to replace free-agent Gleyber Torres. But first, the Yankees needed to get Durbin onto the 40-man roster so that he can’t be plucked by another organization, a move they made on Tuesday.
Caleb Durbin: ‘A Stud, Frankly’
Durbin batted .312 with five homers and an incredible 29 steals–29!–in 24 games. He was caught stealing just once in his 30 attempts at the AFL. That showing built upon a good stretch at Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre, in which Durbin batted .287 in 60 games, with a .396 OBP. He hit 10 homers and had 60 RBI, with 29 steals. He was caught only three times.
“I think he’s a stud, frankly,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Great bat-to-ball [skill], elite ability on the bases as a base stealer, a good defender in the middle of the diamond at second base. He’s really started over the last year-plus to create some position flexibility, too. … Really competitive, kind of that hard-nosed, tough player. I’m excited for him. I think he’s going to play a big role for us this upcoming season.”
Yankees Could Use Speed, Youth
Back at the general manager meetings, Cashman was asked what his options might be at second base, with Torres entering free agency and the Yankees cool on bringing him back.
“What are our internal options? Is that moving Jazz [Chisholm Jr.] over to second if you don’t re-sign Gleyber?” he said. “Do you move him over to second? Do you look at Caleb Durbin, your internal candidate coming up?”
The slow-footed and aging Yankees got a jolt from the addition of Chisholm last season at the trade deadline. Bringing in Durbin to play either second or third base–he spent more time at third than second in Arizona–would add some youth and speed to the lineup.
“Our job is to evaluate all of it and then how it settles in with the rest of the roster. Those are things that we will be doing,” Cashman said.
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