New York Yankees: Five infield options if they don’t sign Manny Machado
If the New York Yankees fail to sign Manny Machado, who could they add to their infield?
The big meeting is finally happening this week. The New York Yankees will meet face to face with Manny Machado as a part of his free agent tour this week. Fans in New York, Chicago and Philadelphia are hopig to have an All-Star infielder under their Christmas tree.
No one questions Machado’s ability or the fact that he is one of the best players in the game. The questions are the hustle, the dirty plays and of course, how much will he cost and for how many years.
For the New York Yankees, with Didi Gregorius undergoing Tommy John Surgery this off-season, a hole at shortstop was created. A hole could be created at third as well, if the club decides to trade the American League Rookie of the Year runner-up in Miguel Andujar, due to his inability to field the baseball.
After re-signing J.A. Happ and trading for James Paxton to bolster the rotation, the big free agent infield prize is Machado. What if they aren’t able to sign him? What if he wants too many years and money they aren’t willing to pay him?
As a GM, you have to a plan B, C and D for everything and New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman certainly does. His ability to pivot, makes him one of the best in the game. Let’s take a look at who could represent that for the club, should they fail to land Machado (and no, I don’t mean Bryce Harper)
Jurickson Profar
Jurickson Profar has long been a trade target of the New York Yankees and why not? He was the number one prospect in baseball once upon a time, but that prospect star faded due to injury. He finally displayed a bit of that ability last season. In his age 25 season, Profar hit .254 with a .793 OPS, all the while playing all over the infield.
With the Rangers undergoing a rebuild and Profar set to hit free agency after the 2020 season, now may be the time for the Rangers to cash in on this asset. The Yankees have plenty of arms in the lower minors the Rangers may want to help them rebuild.
For the New York Yankees, Profar gives them a switch-hitter in a very right-handed lineup. Profar’s best defensive position may be second, which is fine since Gleyber Torres can move over to shortstop while Gregorius recovers from surgery. Even though he would cost a minor league asset or two in a trade, he would be cheaper than going out into the free agent market and signing someone.
Profar’s ability to play multiple positions, in an era where teams, especially the New York Yankees, like to carry 13 pitchers, makes him much more valuable.
Marwin Gonzalez
If the New York Yankees want to go the super utility, albeit probably pretty expensive free agent route, Marwin Gonzalez will be there for the taking. He is the kind of player that every major league team is looking for in baseball 2019. He’s a guy who can switch hit, play everywhere and contribute on both sides of the ball. He would be a much more expensive version of Profar, except he would only cost the Yankees money and not prospects, nor a draft pick, since he wasn’t given a qualifying offer. The fact that everyone can use him, will drive up the price tag though.
Gonzalez rated as a plus defender in the outfield and in the infield in 2018. He may not be the 900 OPS guy of 2017, but an OPS of .730, while providing plus defense and positional flexibility you sign up for that.
For the Yankees, he would probably slot into second while Gregorius is out. After that, Aaron Boone can use him all over the place, giving players rest all over the diamond and providing depth.
Like I mentioned with Profar, being that Swiss-Army Knife on a club is so important and with Gonzalez’s hitting ability, it makes it even more valuable.
Troy Tulowitzki
I spoke about Tulowitzki being an option for the New York Yankees in the infield a week ago, and they were among a dozen clubs to attend a showcase for him. Even if his first step isn’t what it was defensively, and he has to move to second base, the Yankees and Troy Tulowitzki are still a good match.
For Tulowitzki, it gives him a chance to be on a team that is trying to win. When Gregorious comes back, Tulowitzki can be a depth option for the New York Yankees in the middle infield. He can also serve as the DH, when Giancarlo Stanton plays the field and if Tulowitzki can hit like he did a couple of years ago, he will find himself in the lineup one way or another.
For the New York Yankees, they would only have to pay Tulowitzki the league minimum, meaning they can take the other funds and use it towards other areas. Maybe they can add another bullpen arm or a starter or both to help their pitching depth. If Tulowitzki doesn’t have it, the Yankees can just cut him. No harm, no foul, no big money commitment. That’s what the Toronto Blue Jays have to deal with, not the Yankees.
Freddy Galvis
While he may not be as low cost an option as Tulowitzki, the New York Yankees could certainly do worse defensively at shortstop than signing Freddy Galvis. The Yankees do have some interest in Galvis, and he certainly could be where they pivot to should they fail to land Machado.
Galvis was top 10 in defensive runs saved last season among shortstops. He’s someone who can also play second, third and some outfield. He won’t kill you offensively either. He’s hit double digits in homers over the last three seasons as well as 25 or more doubles in that time frame. He’s also played in every game the past two seasons, so he’s someone that can be run out there day in and day out with no issues.
However, his offensive approach could use some work, as he doesn’t fit the typical New York Yankees offensive player who works the count and draws walks. His career OBP is .295. His OBP last year was .299. Maybe he can learn to improve that were he to sign, but sometimes guys just are what they are. In this case Galvis is just going up there hacking.
He won’t cost that much, and maybe the Yankees can give him a one-year deal with an option to bring him in.
Brian Dozier
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The New York Yankees haven’t been connected to him quite yet, and we haven’t really heard a ton about his market quite yet. Maybe it’s because he played through a severe bone bruise in his knee last season, but Machado’s former Dodger teammate Brian Dozier could be a nice option for them, Maybe at a one year deal so he can re-establish his value.
The 31 year old is just one year removed from a 34 homer 93 RBI campaign with an OPS of .856. Yes, the New York Yankees have a ton of right-handed pop already, but if you can hit, you can hit and if they can get that kind of production out of second base, with Torres moving to short for a while than so be it.
Dozier played a little bit of short and third in the minors. If he’s healthy, maybe he can provide the Yankees with some depth there as well.
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Clearly, Manny Machado is the main prize. However, if they fail to sign him, they are plenty of options the New York Yankees can look to, even more than were mentioned here. Out of the five, I could see any of the five, but I think Galvis or Tulowitzki would be the ones most likely out of the group.