How can the Yankees prevent Soto's new squad from outshining them?

Now that Juan Soto went across the East River to Queens, there are plenty of questions about how the Yankees can again solidify themselves as World Series contenders for the 2025 season. With Judge at right, Dominguez at center, Volpe at second, Wells at catcher, Stanton at DH, a now-solidified rotation with the huge signing of Max Fried, and utility man Jazz Chisholm Jr, the Yankees must figure out how to fill the gaps with the money they saved from missing out on Soto Sunday night. Let’s go through the options on the table for the Yanks to create the team most likely to return to November next year.

First Base:

The only position that seems to be unfixable through the players the Yankees currently have seems to be first base. While they have the option to re-sign Rizzo, who was out with injury and wasn’t the same as prior seasons, develop Ben Rice, a player who started in place of Rizzo for parts of the season, or deploy former batting champion DJ Lemahieu, who has not performed well in recent seasons, the Yankees will likely look outside of their own organization to find a first baseman. With Soto’s move to the Mets clearing up space for new purchases, the Yankees may try to fight for a shorter-term deal with 34-year-old Christian Walker or a mid-length deal for slugger Pete Alonso, who may feel Soto will outshine him if he returns to Queens next year. If the Yankees are hoping for a slugger who doesn’t get on base quite as much, they can look to Seattle’s free agent Ty France, a thirty-year-old who may be able to produce some of the home runs Yankee Stadium will be craving with Soto’s absence. We don’t know what Steinbrenner and Cashman are cooking, but it will likely involve at least fighting hard to sign a new first baseman to strengthen the bottom of the lineup. However, staying away from these types of power hitters may be advantageous for the Yankees as many of their expected vs actual and advanced statistics show them overperforming their true value.

Second Base:

To me, this is one of the easiest decisions to make for the Yankees. Torres had a stellar year in the Bronx, adding to his career 2023 season, and although he slightly outperformed his expected and advanced metrics, the argument for a decent deal to stay is very compelling. He has gotten much better at not chasing balls outside of the strike zone and thus his strikeout rates remain in the top percentiles of the league. He has improved his reputation of making a lot of errors and fielding mishaps, lowering his OAA by two but playing almost 100 more innings than last year. If the Yankees miss this opportunity, they can always put utility man Chisholm at second, but he is much more valuable at the Yanks’ vulnerable positions like third and left. 

Third Base:

If the Yankees decide to stick with their options and not attempt to trade for a third baseman, they will end up with Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the position but a gap at left field. Especially if they decide not to go for a left fielder (or even first baseman), the Yankees will have to consider signing a free agent or trading for a third baseman. The obvious choice for a free agent is Bregman, who is miles ahead of the rest of the free agent class of 2024-25 in accolades. Bregman had a career-high WAR of 4.1 and hit 26 HR (highest in five years). However, his biggest improvement was on the defensive side, earning his first career Gold Glove award at third base thanks to an impressive six outs above average, in the 91st percentile for all major leaguers this season. The Yankees have already pivoted towards Bregman this week and due to their high budget, they have to be determined to steal him from their biggest rival in the past decade. The Cardinals have also expressed interest in trading away third baseman Nolan Arenado, which is another offer the Yankees have on their radar. His strikeout percentage went down and his walk percentage went up, albeit not dramatically. However, he continues his long stretch of fielding dominance, only losing to now five-time Gold Glove winner Matt Chapman of the Giants. Although Arenado once again lost the award, he had a much improved defensive campaign from last season’s dreadful performance and returned to his typical numbers. 

Left/Center Field:

Considering that Jasson Dominguez can play either position, it is safe to say that whichever position he’s not utilized for will be open for new talent from outside the organization. While the Yankees can fill up their outfield with Dominguez, Judge, and Chisholm, the latter is needed much more in the infield in the case of a gap at second or third base. Kyle Tucker had a career year in 2023, finishing fifth in MVP voting, winning his first Silver Slugger award, and almost winning the Gold Glove. Sidelined by injury for most of 2024, he still accumulated stats worthy of a large deal and a bidding war by World Series contenders. If the Yankees land Bregman, they obviously won’t be able to grab Tucker from Houston as well, and vice versa, but he’s still a strong option for a trade or a free-agent snag next season. Cody Bellinger started his career at the same level as Judge but hasn’t had the same success, ending up as a Cub after a relatively unsuccessful time with the Dodgers after his rookie and MVP seasons. Bellinger has had a turbulent career due to his inconsistencies, but his fielding has always been solid and unfortunate injuries have been a main cause of decline in the past couple of years. However, the Yankees hope to shift Judge back to right field, and signing Bellinger would achieve that and pair up the 2017 Rookies of the Year. The question is whether or not the Yankees would be willing to give up some talent, including Stroman, who the Cubs apparently want if they are going to trade Bellinger away.