Less than two weeks into the new season, what every team in baseball secretly fears at all times seems to be coming to pass. After their worst year as a franchise since the Reagan administration, the New York Yankees are one of the most fearsome teams in Major League Baseball once again this season.
Not even seven months ago, the sky was falling in the Bronx as the Yankees sought only to extend their 30-year winning season streak while contemplating firing their entire braintrust. It’s easy to make fun of Yankee fans for clutching onto the glory days, but it really is enviable how their team is truly always in the picture.
But the fact that the start to the season has gone so well should not be a reason for the Yankees to sit on their laurels and wait for an American League pennant to show up on their doorstep. Jonathan Loaisiga’s season-ending injury was the first reminder for this team that in baseball, things will never go completely according to plan. There are moves this team can and should make to set themselves up for the rest of this season and beyond. Let’s talk about some of those moves:
Trade for COL C Elias Diaz
This might be unpopular with certain segments of the fan base who fall into the camp of loving Jose Trevino, Austin Wells or both. But if there’s a glaring weakness with this Yankees lineup, it’s offense from the catching position. It’s risky to bank on Wells fully claiming the starting job at this
Enter Elias Diaz, who famously became one of the more anonymous All-Star Game MVPs in league history with his go-ahead home run in last year’s Midsummer Classic in Seattle. His numbers slacked in the second half, but he’s proven himself to be a solid hitter for a catcher and an excellent thrower behind the plate.
If early signs are any indication, Trevino may simply not be a big-league quality hitter at this stage of his career. If that becomes obvious over a large sample, the Yankees will have no choice but to add a catcher who can pick up the slack. Diaz would fit in perfectly to a platoon situation with Wells, if not as the full-time starter.
Recall RHP Clayton Beeter
Beeter was stretched out to be a starter for most of his minor league career but got his first opportunity in the big leagues as a reliever—one inning in Houston before promptly being sent back to AAA.
The Yankees’ 14th-ranked prospect going into 2024, Beeter is already 25, has a sturdy 6-foot-2, 220 lb frame, and features mid-90s heat with a devastating sweeper. He looked MLB-ready in spring training and with the injury to Loaisiga and the struggles of Nick Burdi, Beeter should have a home in the Yankee Stadium bullpen.
The Yankees aren’t crazy; they know Beeter is going to be a factor in their season eventually no matter what. He could end up in the rotation if injuries occur, but more likely than not, he’ll be getting important outs in the bullpen by midseason—Aaron Boone himself said as much in one of his appearances on the Talkin’ Yanks podcast.
Oh, and as an added bonus, Beeter was the return the Yankees got when they shipped Joey Gallo to the Dodgers at the 2022 trade deadline. If he can succeed and give the Yankees value after the well-documented struggles Gallo endured in the Bronx, fans will love Beeter forever.
Extend SS Anthony Volpe
The most important development of the Yankees’ hot opening stretch to the season is that their 22-year-old sophomore shortstop, Anthony Volpe, looks like he has fully blossomed into a two-way star.
Coming off a 2023 season with an on-base percentage under .300, Volpe’s at-bats in 2024 have been unrecognizable. He’s seeing more pitches, showing more balance on every swing, and finding holes even when he doesn’t fully square the ball up.
So now that the Yankees know Volpe is destined to be their long-term stalwart at shortstop, it is paramount that they lock him in on a team-friendly deal. With three $300 million men on their roster already and a fourth on the way — if the team keeps Juan Soto, the Yankees’ payroll in five years — the Yankees payroll could look like the budget for a Marvel film.
If Volpe becomes the player he seems more capable of becoming, any deal under an average annual value of $20 million would be a massive boon to the Yankees’ payroll. If Volpe and his representation are willing to hear any discussion of an extension, Brian Cashman needs to do everything in his power to make it happen this calendar year.
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