Yankees face difficult middle-infield question this offseason

MLBTR released our annual projected salaries for arbitration-eligible players last week. Among the class, only Juan Soto, Pete Alonso and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a higher figure than Gleyber Torres. MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projects the Yankee second baseman for a salary in the $15.3M range for his final year of club control.

Torres has earned that lofty estimate with consistent offense through his five-plus seasons in the majors. He’s a career .267/.334/.454 hitter in a little over 3000 trips to the plate and has been above-average in five of six campaigns. This past season was typical for the righty-swinging infielder. Torres connected on 25 homers with a .273/.347/.453 showing across 672 plate appearances. He walked at a strong 10% clip while punching out only 14.6% of the time, the lowest rate of his career.

The glove is less reliable. Torres was a well below-average defender at shortstop earlier in his career. He has received tolerable but fringy grades from Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average at second base. Torres isn’t in danger of moving off the keystone. The bat carries the profile, though.

Even with a projected salary north of $15M, Torres isn’t a non-tender candidate. He’s an above-average regular who would immediately be the best player available in a barren free agent middle infield class were the Yankees to inexplicably cut him loose. It’s fairly common for teams to consider trade scenarios for good but not elite players headed into their final seasons of club control on lofty projected salaries. That’s a more realistic possibility.

Dealing veterans in the five-plus year service class isn’t solely a move made by non-contenders. The Blue Jays (Teoscar Hernández), Brewers (Hunter Renfroe) and Twins (Gio Urshela) all made such moves last offseason and still made a playoff run. Toronto dealt Hernández for affordable bullpen help in right-hander Erik Swanson and to clear room in the outfield for a more defense-oriented group with the subsequent acquisitions of Daulton Varsho and Kevin Kiermaier. Milwaukee and Minnesota made their moves mostly with payroll in mind, though the Brewers did bring in middle reliever Elvis Peguero as part of the Renfroe return.

Clearly, the Yankees aren’t operating with the same financial constraints as the Brewers or Twins. Yet both those teams were also freed up to part with a solid veteran regular because they felt a young, pre-arbitration player could step up in the near future. Milwaukee had outfield prospects Joey Wiemer and Sal Frelick on the doorstep of the big leagues. The Twins were set to turn third base to second-year player José Miranda, with former first overall pick Royce Lewis a midseason possibility for an infield role following his return from ACL surgery.

For the Yankees, the biggest question might be whether they believe 23-year-old Oswald Peraza is capable of assuming that mantle. Peraza, who debuted with a strong 18-game showing late in 2022, spent the bulk of last season in Triple-A. He had a solid .268/.357/.479 line in 300 plate appearances there. The Yankees recalled him once they fell out of contention in late August. Peraza got regular infield run for five weeks but didn’t make an impact. He hit just .198/.236/.306 in 33 games to close out the year.

It’d be easier for general manager Brian Cashman and his front office to pencil Peraza for an everyday role in 2024 had he taken advantage of that opportunity. There’s nevertheless still an argument that’s their best course of action. Peraza is out of options, so the Yankees can’t send him back to Triple-A. (He’d surely be claimed on waivers if they tried to take him off the 40-man roster.) He’ll have to be on the major league roster unless the Yankees surprisingly traded him. If they’re hopeful he’ll be able an above-average regular at some point, it makes sense to get him consistent playing time.

That could come at third base, where Peraza spent the majority of his time in September. The Yankees received a putrid .221/.294/.361 slash from that position this year. That includes below-average work from the since-released Josh Donaldson, impending free agent Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Peraza himself. DJ LeMahieu was the other player with extended action at the position. The 35-year-old had a league average season overall despite solid production in the second half.

If the Yankees still view LeMahieu as an everyday player or land a free agent at the hot corner like Jeimer Candelario, the keystone becomes the obvious position for Peraza. The organization stuck with Anthony Volpe at shortstop through a middling offensive season. He outperformed most expectations defensively and seems entrenched there. Anthony Rizzo is expected back at first base, where LeMahieu saw most of his reps in the season’s final month.

There’s enough infield talent the Yankees could turn to the trade market on Torres. New York has a number of issues on the roster. There are questions in both outfield spots opposite Aaron Judge. Injuries or down years for each of Carlos Rodón, Nestor Cortes, Luis Severino and Frankie Montas (the latter two of whom are headed to free agency) exposed the rotation depth in 2023. Their catchers contributed almost nothing offensively.

New York will have to address some of those shortcomings via free agency. Shopping Torres is another potential avenue for upgrading a different area of the roster. As the Hernández, Renfroe and Urshela deals demonstrate, there’s not immense trade value with one relatively costly season of a solid regular. While Torres is probably the best player of that group, he’s likely to also be the most expensive.

There’s more trade appeal now than there would be midseason, however. If the Yankees trade Torres during the offseason, an acquiring club could make him a qualifying offer at the end of next season — thereby entitling them to draft compensation if he departs in free agency. That wouldn’t be possible if Torres were dealt at next summer’s deadline, since teams can only make a QO to a player who spent the entire season on their roster.

The demand for middle infield solutions might also never be higher. The free agent second base class is headlined by the likes of Whit Merrifield, Amed Rosario and Adam Frazier. For teams trying to upgrade at the keystone — the White Sox, Mariners and Tigers may all fit that description and have short-term payroll space — the trade market is the clearest path.

Whether any team would be willing to make a strong enough offer for the Yankees to part with their second-best hitter won’t be known until the offseason. New York’s offense was a disaster when Judge went on the injured list. Trading Torres would thin it further unless they directly swapped him for a similarly productive outfield bat. Cashman and his staff have kicked around trade scenarios regarding Torres in the past and have yet to get a deal they find compelling. If they feel Peraza warrants a similar extended look to the one they gave Volpe this year, they could explore the market again this offseason.