Yankees Spring Training Battles to Watch

by Cary Greene

February 24, 2026

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Spring Training is upon us and this spring, there are actually some jobs up for grabs down in Tampa as the Yankees begin camp. It's a fun time of year for MLB fans to get glimpses of Minor League talent, star players and numerous non-roster invitees who are auditioning for roster spots. While the bulk of the Yankees roster is basically set, there are bench spots and bullpen vacancies up for grabs most years and this spring is no different as there are at least two spots on the active roster up for grabs. A lot can happen between the start of camp and the first pitch of the season.

Last Spring

Last spring, Cam Schlittler impressed with his 98 mph four-seamer and his ability to throw strikes. Trent Grisham also overtook Jasson Dominguez as Grish vaulted from being a light hitting, fourth outfielder and into an expanded role. Grisham never let up and he put up a career year, which by season’s end had relegated Dominguez into being nothing more than an afterthought. Will Warren also looked very sharp last spring, as he put his disastrous 2024 stint with the Yankees behind him, demonstrating refined command and positioning himself into contributing to the rotation. Warren’s opportunity was crystalized due to Gerrit Cole’s unfortunate elbow injury and subsequent Tommy John surgery. Carlos Lagrange and his 103 mph fastball also caught the Yankees attention last spring and Dominic Smith, who was a non-roster invitee, forced himself into the conversation due to Giancarlo Stanton’s chronic elbow issues.

Injuries

Indeed, injuries have a way of creating avenues that lead directly to roster spots for players that perhaps seemed on the fringe of relevance as Spring Training camps around the league begin. Those same injuries can also force general managers into making emergency trades to offset the loss of star players they were previously counting on, who succumb to any number of dreaded injuries during camp.

Every spring, the Yankees - like all teams - hope to avoid major injuries to their key players during Spring Training and this notion is all the more true this season for the Yankees, who lack a Minor League system flush with positional depth. For this reason, Yankee’s GM Brian Cashman tendered non roster invites to 27 players this spring - the group is composed of 14 pitchers and 13 position players. Cashman is always looking to provide depth of course and while some of the NRI’s will opt for free agency if they don’t make the team, many of them will begin the season in Triple-A to start the season, awaiting their chance to be called up.

Where Have You Gone Nick Torres?

One player that is mysteriously absent from this season’s camp is Mexican League MVP Nick Torres. No reason for this has been given by the Yankees, but Torres was certainly a player many fans were excited to see play. While Torres was likely slated to begin the season in Scranton with the Yankees, the team needs a player with his skill set.

Who will be the Fourth Outfielder?

It’s no secret that the Yankees have a need for fourth outfielder, preferably one who hits from the right side and excels at hitting left-handed pitching. This may be especially true now that Cashman has noted that it’s certainly possible for Jasson Dominguez to open the season in Triple-A, where he can play every day in order to work on his fielding woes and also, to get reps batting right-handed against left-handed pitching. With Dominguez and Spencer Jones both likely ticketed to open the season in Scranton, who will be the team’s fourth outfielder is anyone’s guess.

Will the Yankees Need a Platoon at Shortstop?

Another intriguing positional storyline centers around Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe being out to begin the season due to his shoulder surgery and subsequent recovery time. Jose Caballero likely has as good a chance as anyone at seizing the vacancy created by Volpe’s absence and there are rumors within the League that the Yankees might look to manipulate Volpe’s service time, by having him complete an extended rehab in Scranton. If that were to occur, the Yankees likely would need an experienced shortstop on the roster, to split duties with Caballero, so that may open a roster spot for Paul DeJong, to make the team as a reserve infielder.

Therefore, an interesting battle to follow is which players will claim reserve infielder roles with the team. Oswaldo Cabrera is also returning from a fractured ankle, so depending on how he looks against live pitching, he may or may not factor into the competition. This spring, the Yankees are even having third baseman Ryan McMahon take some reps at shortstop, which illustrated just how acutely aware that the Yankees are regarding the need to back up Caballero at shortstop. Meanwhile, the aforementioned DeJong has logged 2,752 career at-bats as a Major League shortstop and though he has a very weak throwing arm, he has very good range and has been able to play acceptable defense at the position.

Is a Possible Early Season Trade Brewing?

Still, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Brian Cashman pull off a trade for a better platoon option at shortstop than what DeJong represents. In the absence of such a move, DeJong will certainly contend this spring for a bench spot as a reserve infielder and due to him hitting right-handed pitching better than Caballero, there exists a possibility that until Volpe returns, it might very well be DeJong and not Caballero, who plays the most innings at shortstop in the early part of the season. Barring a fantastic spring from Oswaldo Cabrera, the Yankees will likely open the season with Cabby and Dejong as the primary shortstops. I could be wrong about this of course, but based on which players are likely going to be the most productive, I’m thinking the Yankees may need to go with a platoon at shortstop.

Backup Catcher?

Another minor positional situation centers around the backup catcher role and given that Paul Goldschmidt has been brought back on a one-year deal, worth $4-million with another $2-million in performance incentives, Ben Rice will likely force J.C. Escarra to ride the Scranton Shuttle again this season. It’s a long, 162-game grind of a season and the Yankees will likely need Escarra for stretches of time. Unfortunately, Brian Cashman wasn’t able to trade for right-hand hitting Catcher, though he did bring in four right-hand hitting catchers as non-roster invitees, so it is possible one of them could have an eye-opening spring that would force the Yankees to give a red hot platoon catcher a bench spot.

The Trade that Never Happened

One offseason catching target that I had written about, declaring he was a realistic, inexpensive to acquire target who the Yankees might have traded Escarra for, was  Tyler Stephenson, the Reds power hitting right-handed catcher who excels at blocking pitches and doing damage against left-handed pitching with his bat. It had been widely speculated that the Reds might move Stephenson as they might have interest in freeing up salary or upgrading other positions. However, since I wrote about the existing potential to trade for him, the Reds agreed to a $6.8 million contract with Stephenson, who is in his final season of team control.

I had speculated that trading J.C. Escarra for Stephenson, with the Reds tossing in a lower level prospect to offset his expensive contract (for a backup catcher) might be possible. Ultimately,  Cashman and Reds GM Brad Meador never got together regarding a possible trade and that’s unfortunate for the Yankees. Stephenson’s StatCast picture shows a slugger with barrel percentages in the 90th quartile and an ability to hit the ball hard in the 84th quartile. He’s also in the 78th quartile in BB% and given that he put up a 126 wRC+ last season against left-handed pitching. Trading for Stephenson would have been a good move on Cashman’s part, but as such, the Yankees are presently entirely too left-handed at catcher.

Yankees Bench

Presently, I’m forecasting the Yankees opening day bench players to be Paul Goldschmidt, Amed Rosario and Paul DeJong, with one remaining spot available for a right-hand hitting power bat or possibly, a third catcher. As always, that final Yankees positional roster spot seems to be up for grabs. One name to watch is former top international prospect Marco Luciano, he could nab the fourth outfielder spot with a strong spring. Cashman may be waiting to see how things play out, but if noone really emerges this spring, he may surprise everyone with a needle moving trade and it sure feels like, if this happens, he’ll target either a middle infielder capable of playing shortstop, or possibly an outfielder who can play all three positions.

The Rotation

On the pitching side of things, the Yankees rotation appears to be penciled in and so barring injuries, Max Fried will start the season as the Yankees defacto ace. With Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon and Clarke Schmidt all out to start the season, Cam Schlittler has positioned himself as the team’s number-two starter and is likely to begin the season in this slot. From there, it’s a tossup between Will Warren, Ryan Weathers and Luis Gil as to who slots in where. The Yankees rotation is currently a single injury away from having to either slide Ryan Yarbrough or Paul Blackburn from the bullpen into the rotation, make a trade or possibly promote a prospect prematurely. Keeping the rotation in good health will be the single most important theme this spring. The first man called up from Scranton would likely be Elmer Rodriguez.

Yankees Bullpen

It appears that there will be eight bullpen spots on the active roster and it looks like six or possibly seven of them are already spoken for. Working in reverse order, the Yankees closer will be David Bednar, whom I had identified as a possible Yankees trade target over three-years ago and am very happy to see is finally in the fold after Cashman acquired him from the Pirates at the Deadline last season. The set-up men are likely Camillo Doval, who will step into an expanded role with the Yankees now that Devin Williams and Luke Weaver are both Mets. Tim Hill will resume his role as the Yankees high-leverage lefty and Fernando Cruz will be his righty wingman. Middle relievers Paul Blackbrun, Jake Bird and Ryan Yarbrough will all eat innings to start the season.

Potential bullpen options to fill the final roster spot include Brent Headrick, Cade Winquest, Yerry de Los Santos, Angel Chivilli, Kevin Castro, Osvaldo Bido and Harrison Cohen. Perhaps once the Coles and Rodons of the world return to action, the Yankees may elect to move starters like Weathers and or Gil to the bullpen. They might also look to promote electric Minor League arms like Lagrange, Ben Hess, Rodriguez or others.

Much Ado About Two

Barring unforeseen injuries, only two roster spots will likely be decided this spring. The Yankees will have to carry a backup infielder of course and they’ll likely need a backup outfielder as well. Given that I think the Yankees have a need for a platoon option at shortstop and seeing as how Paul DeJong is a pretty solid fit in that department, the battle for the final bench spot likely comes down to who will become the team’s fourth outfielder.

Oswaldo Cabrera may need more reps that Spring Training can provide, but if his ankle is 100 percent, he could be a bit of an x-factor for the final roster spot, along with a few others.

Seeing as how the bullpen is pretty much set, it seems like the other story line will involve the scrum that decides who gets the final bullpen spot. I highly doubt that the Yankees will open the season with any of their prized pitching prospects in the bullpen, as the idea to start the season is usually to keep your best prospects stretched out and ready to jump into the rotation if needed.

While there won’t be a ton of drama and intrigue regarding battles for multiple roster spots this spring, there are a few intriguing story lines to follow and Yankees fans will get to see many top prospects performing against similar competition, so I expect a lot of fun surrounding what will hopefully be a relatively injury free spring for the Yankees!