Plotting the Yankees Next Moves for 2025

It happened. Juan Soto pulled his best Rod Tidwell impression (Jerry Maguire) with the largest, most bloated version of “Show me the Money” you’ve ever seen. Congratulations to the New York Mets and their new superstar.

I’ve maintained from the beginning of the off season that if the New York Yankees did not resign Soto, it would be a failure; you are better with Soto than without, and there is no pivot you can make that would make up for the fact that you didn’t retain this generational talent. So all in all, the Yankees get an automatic F for their winter.

But…that doesn’t mean that there aren’t moves the Yankees could make to make the F a little less sharp, to make lemonade out of the lemon that would have been the Soto contract (yeah, I’m bitter, sue me). Brian Cashman and the front office have absolutely started off quite well, as signing ace Max Fried to join an already stacked rotation, and trading Nestor Cortes and prospect Caleb Durbin for All-Star Brewers Closer Devin Williams were masterclasses. So, with needs in LF, 1B and one of either 2B or 3B, here’s where I want to see the Yankees upgrade their team next.

For starters, I want to add another starter. The rotation thus far is pretty great with Gerrit Cole, Fried, Carlos Rodon, Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt, but it can always be better. By adding another ace in Corbin Burnes or potential ace in Roki Sasaki you have taken a World Series capable rotation and made it into an almost “sure to be there,” staff. I would also bring back both Tommy Kahnle and Tim Hill as needed re-additions to the ‘pen. But what about offense?

Everyone, it seems, is just waiting for the Yankees and Cubs to make a trade involving Cody Bellinger, and I am one of them. Bellinger is a near perfect fit for the Bronx Bombers as he is a left-handed bat with power, and is a really good fielder who can play all over the outfield as well as first base. I also have no problem believing he could regain at least his 30 HR power, if not more in Yankee Stadium. If a trade for Bellinger is completed, however, I also want Nico Hoerner to be included in the deal; he is a really good fielder and not a terrible hitter either. A move for both fits multiple holes, and leaves flexibility for where you want to go next.

If Bellinger is the move, I’d love for the Yankees to sacrifice some more picks and sign former Arizona Diamondback Christian Walker and have Bellinger play LF. Yes, he is 34, but he is also a gold glove caliber fielder with power, and his right-handed swing can help to neutralize the impact of the Red Sox acquiring Garrett Crochet. Besides, do you know who has had massive success against the Dodgers? I’ll give you a hint; it’s not Hindu Grounder. If they are not able or willing to sign Walker, there are a couple more potential moves that could make a lot of sense.

If they are committed to keeping Bellinger in the outfield, the Yankees could try and swing trades for the Rangers’ Nathaniel Lowe or the Guardians’ Josh Naylor (please, for the love of everything, not Naylor), but they do not intrigue or excite me. An off the radar pickup could be Vinnie Pasquantino of the Royals, especially with Jac Caglianone potentially being a quick promotion away from the Majors, though there is no indication he is or could be available. So the next place I would turn is to trade for Tampa’s Yandy Diaz and Pete Fairbanks. In doing so you get a righty bat at 1B who has AL East experience, and always seems to be good against the Yankees, but you also shore up the bullpen even more with a flame throwing righty who has Closer abilities and is the best interview in baseball.

If, however, the Yankees prefer to stick Cody at 1B, then I think a stone worth kicking over is a potential acquisition of Luis Robert Jr. from the White Sox; he has All-Star talent and could be a real game changer; the only downside is he is hard to keep on the field for an entire year, so the only way that would work is if they also bring in an additional backup outfielder like Harrison Bader, Ramón Laureano, Max Kepler or even, cover your ears Yankee fans, Alex Verdugo on a one-year bench deal.

Pete Alonso and Gleyber Torres could be fine additions if all else fails, but I doubt Cashman and Co. will go in that direction, and as for a potential addition of Alex Bregman at third, I’d rather have an invasive medical procedure once a week than have to watch that arrogant cheater in Yankee pinstripes.

I hope I am not being too subtle.

My ideal going into 2025 is as follows:

Rotation:

1. Gerrit Cole (R)
2. Max Fried (L)
3. Corbin Burnes (R) / Roki Sasaki (R)
4. Carlos Rodon (L)
5. Luis Gil (R) (Clarke Schmidt and Marcus Stroman would be trade bait)

Lineup:

C – Austin Wells (L)
1B – Christian Walker (R) / Yandy Diaz (R)
2B – Nico Hoerner (R)
SS – Anthony Volpe (R)
3B – Jazz Chisholm Jr. (L)
LF – Cody Bellinger (L)
CF – Jasson Dominguez (S)
RF – Aaron Judge (R)
DH – Giancarlo Stanton (R)

Bullpen

CL: Devin Williams (R)
SU: Luke Weaver (R)
RP: Ian Hamilton (R)
RP: Jake Cousins (R)
RP: Tommy Kahnle (R)
RP: Tim Hill (L)
RP: Mark Leiter Jr. (R) / Clayton Beeter (R) / Pete Fairbanks (R)

Bench

C – Jose Trevino* (R)
Util – Oswaldo Cabrera (S)
OF – Trent Grisham* (L)
IF – DJ LeMahieu* (R)
OF – Unknown Milb/Trade/FA

*I am open to trading or (in DJ’s case) cutting these for salary relief and better options.

Aaron Reale

Aaron is a Writer and communicator who has notably served on the communications team of the Westchester County Executive. Nicknamed "Mr. Baseball" in his youth, Aaron is a lifelong Yankee fan, Tino Martinez and Aaron Judge enthusiast, and a fierce defender of Craig Biggio's Hall of Fame worthiness. When he is not writing, or doing baseball related activities, Aaron is an avid foodie and culinarian. His non-baseball writing can be found at the Realety Check substack.