The New York Yankees are far from done with their active offseason.
After Juan Soto bolted the Bronx for the New York Mets, the Yankees have made multiple blockbuster deals and trades.
The Yankees signed left-handed ace Max Fried to an eight-year, $218 million deal, giving them one of the best rotations in baseball along with No. 1 Gerrit Cole, reigning AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil, and Carlos Rodon.
The Bronx Bombers also traded for Cody Bellinger from the Chicago Cubs to seemingly replace Soto in the outfield. Bellinger will likely play either center or left field while AL MVP Aaron Judge moves back to right.
They even solidified their bullpen by trading for shutdown reliever Devin Williams from the Milwaukee Brewers.
New York is also looking to add a first baseman after not picking up Anthony Rizzo’s option. Are they still looking to bring Pete Alonso to the Bronx after six seasons in Queens?
MLB insider reveals who Yankees are looking to pursue as new first baseman
According to The Athletic’s MLB insider Ken Rosenthal, it appears the Yankees are moving away from trying to sign Alonso or Christian Walker and looking for a more inexpensive option.
“The free-agent alternatives include Paul Goldschmidt, Carlos Santana, Justin Turner, Anthony Rizzo and Josh Bell. The Yankees also could trade for the Cleveland Guardians’ Josh Naylor ($12 million in final year of club control); Texas Rangers’ Nathaniel Lowe ($10.7 million with one year of arbitration remaining); or the Tampa Bay Rays’ Yandy Díaz ($10 million with a $12 million club option for 2026),” Rosenthal reports.
The big reason why the Yankees likely won’t sign Alonso or Walker is because they would lose two draft picks. After signing Fried, the Yankees gave up their second- and fifth-round picks, including $1 million in international bonus pool space, according to Rosenthal. If they sign Alonso or Walker, the Yankees would then lose their third- and sixth-round picks.
Rosenthal also points out that the Yankees could move Bellinger to first base and find another outfielder, or go with in-house candidate Ben Rice.
Related: Insider reveals how New York Yankees will use Cody Bellinger
