Sep 28, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton (27) hits an RBI single against the Baltimore Orioles during the fourth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images John Jones-Imagn Images

Yankees Lineup Well Equipped to Take Down Southpaws

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Joseph Randazzo | Last updated Feb 10, 2026 4:00 PM ET

The New York Yankees came into the winter hoping to add more right-handed batters in hopes of crushing southpaws. Their two big offensive acquisitions were returning players, though, with one of them being the lefty Cody Bellinger. The other is Paul Goldschmidt, who will see more of a diminished role in his second year in New York.

Goldschmidt in particular doesn't satiate the hunger of a fanbase that hasn't seen a championship since 2009 — a lifetime by this organization's standards. Still, if the plan was to find bats who can destroy lefties, on paper, Goldschmidt can do just that.

Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Goldschmidt isn't the only former National League Most Valuable Player and longtime veteran capable of doing that, either. The other is Giancarlo Stanton.

Stanton and Goldschmidt vs. Southpaws

If there is one thing both excel in at this point in their respective careers, it's taking down southpaws. Goldschmidt and Stanton went in opposite directions last season, but the biggest similarity between them was just how prolific they were in neutralizing left-handed pitching.

Last season, Goldschmidt hit 10 homers. Seven of those 10 homers came against lefties. He hit .336/.411/.570 with a 169 wRC+.

Stanton was just as good as Goldschmidt against lefties. Crushing them was always his forte, anyway. In 2025, he continued doing so, hitting .277/.397/.554 with a 158 wRC+ off of them.

Better than both of them, of course, is the captain, Aaron Judge. Judge hit .341/.491/.789 with a 225 wRC+ against lefties.

The Rice Conundrum

As far as the lineup configuration goes for the two veterans, Goldschmidt and Stanton, the big question is what happens to Ben Rice if a team throws a lefty at the Yankees. One fear among fans is that Goldschmidt will take over for Rice. For as great as Goldschmidt is in this area, if the Yankees believe in Rice, they shouldn't let that happen.

For all of Rice's struggles against lefties, he was still able to hit them somewhat. It's true that he hit .208 against them with a .271 OBP, but that .481 slugging with seven home runs is still decent enough. He wasn't fully an automatic out against them.

The best use of Goldschmidt is late in games against a left-handed reliever, on a rare Rice off day, or if an injury occurs and the team can rotate the outfield a bit. In that case, Goldschmidt can rotate in and out of DH.

Even if Goldschmidt will never be that MVP-caliber player again, he can still be a big threat against lefties, and on any given night at the end of a game, a reliever could face him, Stanton, and Judge. It could get ugly for them.

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