One of the biggest needs for the New York Yankees at the trade deadline was a third baseman. Did they get one? Yes and no.
On July 27, they made a deal with the Miami Marlins to acquire Jazz Chisholm Jr., sending three prospects to Miami including slugging catcher/first baseman Augustin Ramirez. He was the only position player they picked up at the deadline, and he had never played third base before as a professional in the major or minor leagues.
From his debut in 2020 through the 2022 season, he was exclusively a middle infielder. Then the Marlins abruptly switched him to center field, where he played for all of 2023 and most of 2024, with the exception of three games back at second base last month to showcase his positional versatility to potential trade partners.
He joined his new team on the road in Boston on July 28, arriving shortly before the game began, and was immediately inserted into the lineup in center field. The next day in Philadelphia, they had him take some drills at third base—a completely unfamiliar position. They liked what they saw so much that he played every inning of the three-game series against the Phillies at the hot corner—and looked like a natural while making some nifty plays.
Despite Chisholm’s amazing adaptability on defense, his bat has been the bigger story. He became the first player in Yankees franchise history with four home runs in his first three games with the team, hitting two each on July 29 and 30. In four games, he has gone 7-19 with four homers, a walk, a stolen base, and only two strikeouts.
Before the trade, he was close to a league-average hitter this season, batting .249/.323/.407 with 13 home runs and 22 steals. The 26-year-old has flashed the potential at times to become even greater, but has dealt with a myriad of injuries in his career. In 2022, he was named an All-Star after smacking 14 home runs in 60 games, but a stress fracture in his lower back ended his season after June 28.
As a left-handed hitter, he could experience a power uptick playing home games at Yankee Stadium. All but two of his home runs this year were pulled to right field, and Baseball Savant estimates he would have hit five additional dingers this season if he had played every game taking aim at the short porch in The Bronx. Still, he already has four bombs in as many games with the Yankees and he hasn’t even played a home game yet.
Chisholm has two more years of arbitration eligibility after this season before he can become a free agent after the 2026 campaign. With second baseman Gleyber Torres set to test the market this offseason, the Yankees eyed Chisholm with the idea that he could step into that role next year. Now his success at third base gives them the flexibility to expand their options this offseason and acquire someone for either second or third—assuming they don’t prefer him in the outfield long-term.
Chisholm’s willingness and skill to play a brand-new position is juxtaposed with Torres’ reluctance to do the same. Greg Joyce of the New York Post reported that he was flat-out opposed to moving off of second base, even though he led all MLB second basemen with 15 errors last year and is on top of that dubious leaderboard again in 2024 with 14. His 29 miscues since the beginning of last year are more than twice as many as anyone else at the position. He has -10 Defensive Runs Saved over those two years, and it doesn’t help that his OPS+ is 86 this season, indicating his offense is 14% lower than league-average.
Chisholm will play his first home game in New York this evening. He’s certain to get a loud ovation from the crowd after his performance at bat and in the field during his first four road games, all of which were Yankees victories. He should get used to the applause because if he keeps up the way he’s been playing, he’ll hear it over and over again for the at least the next two years.
Read the full article here
