NYY News: Incumbent advantage

Jan 28, 2023 - 5:00 AM

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New York Post | Jon Heyman: The Yankees have made a couple of splashes this winter with Aaron Judge and Carlos Rodón, but still have a couple weak points on the roster. Left field and shortstop have been areas of concern all offseason to the same degree they were when the campaign ended in October. There are external options, which will be detailed below, but it seems as though the incumbents have the inside track on 2023 playing time, at least for the beginning of the season.

New York Daily News | Matthew Roberson: On the matter of shortstops, it seems that all the winners the last few years boasted elite talent at the position. The Astros won with Carlos Correa and Jeremy Peña, the Nationals brought back a ring with Trea Turner, and the Dodgers took the only ring of their recent run with Corey Seager at short. The Yankees, as things stand, don’t have talent like that ready to start on Opening Day, but it’s still up for debate how much that matters, especially if the club hits on their top SS prospects.

NJ.com | Mike Rosenstein: Aaron Hicks doesn’t exactly inspire confidence as a fulltime left fielder, and Oswaldo Cabrera is probably best used by taking advantage of his multi-position flexibility. Given that, there’s still an opening in the Yankee outfield, and the club has reached out to free agent David Peralta, who might be the best option should the franchise prioritize staying below the $293 million “Cohen tax” threshold. Peralta won a Gold Glove in 2020 and a Silver Slugger in 2018, but is coming off a fairly mediocre season in Arizona.