On Thursday, the New York Yankees surprised most of the baseball world when they signed infielder Matt Carpenter to a major-league deal.
It was so surprising because Carpenter is far from the player that he used to be. Carpenter, 36, is a three-time All-Star and a one-time Silver Slugger Award winner. He even came in fourth in NL MVP voting while with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2013. He also came in ninth in NL MVP voting with the Cardinals as late as 2018 … but he has been awful since then.
From 2019 through 2021 with the Cardinals, Carpenter hit .203/.325/.346 with an OPS+ of 82 in 129, 50, and 130 games in the seasons, or 80 percent of the Cardinals’ games.
Carpenter left the Cardinals and signed with the Texas Rangers. He was hitting well in 21 games at the Triple-A level (.275/.379/.613). However, last week, the Rangers released him in a mutual move after the two sides decided that there wasn’t an opportunity for him in the majors.
Fast forward to yesterday and Matt Carpenter is suddenly playing for the best team in baseball.
So why would the best team in baseball want him when one of the worst didn’t have a spot for him?
The New York Yankees signed Matt Carpenter because they are concerned about injuries to DJ LeMahieu and others
New York Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu (left wrist) has been day-to-day for the team. Perhaps, the injury is bad enough that he will need an IL stint and, as per usual, the Yankees have a slew of players on the IL.
Outfielder Aaron Hicks was scratched from the starting lineup on Thursday due to a strained hamstring. Outfielder Joey Gallo, catcher Kyle Higashioka, and infielder Josh Donaldson also were just on the IL with COVID (Donaldson is still out, as of this publication).
Including Donaldson, the Yankees have 10 players on the IL right now, including outfielder Giancarlo Stanton. Stanton has been their primary DH and he was just placed on the 10-day IL with a lower calf/high ankle injury.
In other words, Carpenter is a depth piece and, perhaps, it could be a sign that one of their better players, like Stanton or LeMahieu, could be out for an extended period of time.
Matt Carpenter likely won’t be good enough to replace Stanton or even replace LeMahieu on the field or in the lineup but, perhaps, they can catch lightning in a bottle with him for even a few weeks.