This week, some eye-opening news came up about what might be next for the Yankees as they seek to finish off what has been a tumultuous offseason. Still seeking to add some depth in the infield, with the possibility of bringing in either a second baseman or a third baseman, the Yankees were, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, seeking to make a trade with the Padres for infielder Luis Arraez.
The plus side of Arraez is obvious. He has won three straight batting titles, and has a career batting average of .323 in six MLB seasons. He makes contact, and lots of it.
The downside, though, is obvious, too. Arraez does not hit for power, and has just 28 home runs in 2,624 career at-bats. He is not particularly fast, either, with 20 steals and 13 times caught in six seasons. Arraez is not particularly good with his glove, either.
He is a slap hitter–one of the highest order, for sure, but offers little else. Still, for a Yankees team that is looking at the prospect of forcing DJ LeMahieu back into the lineup, with Jazz Chisholm as their top option at both third base and second base, the Yankees need to be open to all possibilities.
Yankees Infield Still in Flux Without a Trade
According to Bleacher Report, though, the negatives with Arraez outweigh the positives and, ultimately, the Yankees will pass on a trade. Arraez is in his final year of team control and will be a free agent after the season, projected to make $145 million over nine years, according to Spotrac.
A swap of Marcus Stroman for Arraez makes some sense, but is probably not enough to get a deal done.
Writes Zachary Rymer of B/R: “Arráez is projected to make $14.6 million in 2025, and it’s doubtful that San Diego would do a bad-contract-swap a la the Marcus Stroman-based offer that the Yankees made to the Cardinals for (Nolan) Arenado. There isn’t much point in trading Arráez unless it gets the Padres under the $241 million luxury tax threshold for 2025.
“Otherwise, Arráez is a notoriously poor defender who would threaten to downgrade the Yankees’ defense even if Chisholm was kept at third. The Yankees could probably live with that, but they shouldn’t want to after poor defense helped doom them in the World Series.”
A deal for Arraez not impossible, then, but appears unlikely, at least for now.
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