Crazy Idea?
- Mike Whiteman
- Jan 25
- 3 min read
By Mike Whiteman By now the Yankees' actions (or inactions) have been scrutinized and analyzed exhaustively, and most of us fans have come to the verdict that the team hasn't done nearly enough to compete for a World Series title in 2026. Are we correct? Well, I guess time will tell. I recently read an article the remaining free agents available, and one name was intriguing to me - Eugenio Suarez.
Many fans are familiar with the slugging third baseman from the speculation of him being a Yankee trade target last summer. We all know that Suarez took his bat to Seattle to finish up a 49-home run season while the Yanks picked up Ryan McMahon, an excellent fielder with a little bit of pop from the left side. McMahon was fine defensively but slashed .208/.308/.333 (81 OPS+) over 54 games in Pinstripes. Add that to Anthony Volpe .212/.272/.391 (83 OPS+) and Austin Wells .219/.275/.436 (95 OPS+) at the bottom of the lineup, and it sure felt like many a potential rally seemed to fizzle out before turning over to the big boppers at the top. Of course, one of the concerns going into the 2026 season is the status of Volpe, who injured his left shoulder in 2025, and had it surgically repaired after the season. Right now, I read a potential return of May 2026. The "plan" looks to be a combination of Jose Caballero, Oswaldo Cabrera and perhaps Amed Rosario filling in until his return. None of these options look especially enticing. Also, who knows how well Volpe plays when he returns. One thing being a fan of the game for almost 50 years has taught me is that injury recovery isn't guaranteed and it isn't always a straight line. So, my solution to this predicament is to sign Suarez for a one-year, high salary deal to play third base. While not a perfect player, he is coming off a .526 slugging season in which he was an All-Star. Suarez has averaged 33 home runs over the past five years. In the field, his numbers don't look all that great but generally handled what he could get to. What of McMahon? The eye test showed an athletic player who fields third base rather well, and I wonder if he could be added to the mix at shortstop. I know position changes aren't things to be entered into lightly (or esteemed leader Paul has well articulated this many times) and there's no guarantee McMahon is up to the task, but I think it's a reasonable risk.
Here's what a batting order could look like with Suarez in the fold: Grisham, cf Judge, rf Bellinger, lf Stanton, dh Chisholm, 2b Suarez, 3b Rice, 1b Wells, c McMahon/Caballero ss That's seven potential 30-home run guys. With Judge, Bellinger, Stanton and Suarez in the middle this defends against top lefties like Garret Crochet, Tarik Skubal, Ranger Suarez and Framber Valdez (maybe with Baltimore). Adding Suarez also gives some more depth in the likely injury to Stanton, as he can be slotted in as designated hitter, McMahon moved back to third and Caballero to shortstop. Looks to me like a pretty low-risk option that has some decent upside to it. By itself, this move likely doesn't win the pennant, but improves the team a bit. Would Suarez do it? Who knows but I have to think if they made a $20+million salary offer that would get his interest. What do YOU think?
Suarez's calling card is projected to decline significantly this coming season. I can't see Cashman feeling so desperate that he needs to swap a third baseman who's fWAR is projected to drop from last season's 3.6 to between 1.6 (OOPSY) up to 2.9 (THE BAT) by all major, publicly available projections services. Suarez is exactly the kind of player the Yankees don't need. Look, I grew up watching Graig Nettles and Brooks Robinson play the hot corner. I'll kindly pass on Suarez.
Maybe a trade would be better for Matt Shaw, Hoerner, Baty, Vientos or Donovan. All much better offense than McMahon and better defense than Suarez or Arraez.
I like the idea. Suarez would greatly improve the lineup near the bottom of the order. But I don't see it's going to happen.
As appealing as the idea of Suarez is, the reality is much different.
As correctly noted, infield defense is paramount given their “ground ball’ pitching philosophy. Suarez ain't that. If they were willing to overlook that, they will not pay $20mm plus for the short side of a platoon. So, McMahon would have to go. He will not be trusted with shortstop after not playing it in the majors. Then they wreaked the defense at two positions. Also, McMahon’s salary is the only one which they can possibly move to get the requisite payroll space. Even then it will be a monumental task to get Hal to ok it.
Now, in the unlikely event they can get Stanton’s $ moved,…
I like it. The Yankees won't. Good idea though