New York Yankees Rumors: Three free agents that should be avoided
By Paul Ashley
The New York Yankees have a difficult situation to deal with in their infield due to an injury to their starting shortstop. However, it should not be dealt with by issuing out an expensive, 10-year contract.
Didi Gregorius will likely be out of action until July after recently undergoing Tommy John surgery. Although they have a need at shortstop during the first half of the season, it should not be filled by signing Manny Machado to a contract in the 10-year, $300 million range.
There is no doubt that Machado is an extremely talented offensive player. Through 162 games in 2018, he compiled 37 home runs, 35 doubles, and 107 runs batted in alongside a slash-line of .297/.367/.538. However, as the Yankees already have a weak fielder on the left-side of the infield in Miguel Andujar, Machado might not be the best fit on this team.
Although Machado once put together a 20.8 UZR in 2013 at third base for the Baltimore Orioles, he compiled a -6.5 UZR at shortstop in 2018 between his time with the Orioles and the Los Angeles Dodgers. As Andujar compiled a league worst -16.0 UZR at third base last season, this could turn out to be a dreadful left side of the infield for the Yankees on defense.
Even though both players are tremendous on the offensive side, the Yankees would be better off looking for a player that excels on the defense, such as Jose Iglesias. During 2018, Iglesias put together an 8.2 UZR at shortstop. Due to this, a short-term offer to Iglesias would help the payroll situation of the organization in the long-run, despite him not possessing Machado’s ability on offense.
The Yankees would also find themselves in a tough situation when Gregorius returns to the team midway through the season. If Machado is in the mix, Gregorius would likely return to shortstop while Machado would likely shift over to third base. This is due to the 3.9 UZR Gregorius compiled at shortstop and the 1.8 UZR Machado compiled at third base last season.
However, this situation would then leave Andujar without a position as Giancarlo Stanton is likely to occupy the designated hitter role for most of next season. The Yankees could potentially have an opening at first base if Luke Voit does not perform at his 2018 level, but moving Andujar to first base may not be a wise decision as he was often removed late in games due to his woes on defense.
Unless the Yankees are planning on trading a young, talented, cost-controlled player in Andujar to fill another area of need on the team, bringing Machado to the Bronx may create a logjam in the short-term and negative luxury tax implications in the long-term.