ESPN: Yankees lose another veteran infielder for peanuts, due to their strange confidence in DJ LeMahieu.
Was it a mistake for the Yankees to pass up Jose Iglesias?
According to Robert Murray of FanSided, veteran Jose Iglesias has agreed to a Minor League deal with the San Diego Padres, meaning the New York Yankees lost out on an infield player who might have improved their lineup at little to no cost. Iglesias would have been a perfect fit for Brian Cashman, at least in a platoon capacity, given the uncertainty around DJ LeMahieu’s health and the lack of performance from Oswaldo Cabrera or Oswald Peraza to secure the third-base position in camp.
Iglesias has a.748 OPS and a.298 batting average since 2019. In contrast, LeMahieu’s OPS has fallen to.204 and.527 in 2024 after hitting.252 and.698 since 2021. Aaron Boone will use Cabrera at third as the seasoned infielder will be out at least until the beginning of the 2025 campaign. However, that decision hurts New York in a number of ways, and it’s difficult to understand why they couldn’t pay this much for a good player in dire need.
Before Opening Day, the Yankees still have a huge void in their lineup.
On Opening Day, Cabrera is probably going to be selected to start at third base. Yankees supporters aren’t holding out much hope that he can produce anything: The 26-year-old has a.291 on-base percentage and a.233 batting average across his three seasons in pinstripes. In 2024, Cabrera had modest success against right-handers, hitting.268 with a.729 OPS. In a platoon scenario, Iglesias may have still allowed the rookie infielder to get at-bats since he hits lefties effectively.
Iglesias wouldn’t have stopped Cashman from keeping the option to trade for a third baseman before the deadline or even before camp breaks. After incentives, his San Diego contract may be worth little over $3 million. The Yankees could have raised the floor a little or even solidified third base for relatively little money.
The lineup for New York has changed since 2024. The loss of Juan Soto and Gleyber Torres is painful, even though the team got Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt. No player in New York’s expected lineup has hit more than 30 home runs in the last two seasons, with the exception of Aaron Judge. With the defending American League Rookie of the Year Luis Gil out to begin 2025 due to a shoulder issue, the starting rotation also suffered greatly.
The Yankees offense is still inexperienced except from Bellinger, Judge, Goldschmidt, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. A large number of young players will be relied upon to provide results. They would have been a superior club without Iglesias, but they must now start 2025 with Cabrera as their third baseman.
