In 2024, the New York Yankees got to their first World Series since 2009 only to be defeated four games to one by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Then, about five weeks later, the Yankees lost out to their crosstown rival New York Mets as they attempted to hang on to generational talent Juan Soto, the top free agent in the market.
Soto played 2024 with the Yankees on a one-year, $31 million contract. The Mets will pay Soto an average of $51 million per year for the next 15 seasons.
But to the Yankees’ credit, they have turned what could have been a dismal offseason into what appears to be a success with their highly aggressive free agent spending. As of New Year’s Day, with 84 days remaining until Opening Day, the Yankees have opened their wallets to the tune of $235.5 million in total free agent commitments, according to the sports business site Spotrac.
The bulk of that spending is accounted for by the eight year, $218 million contract the Yankees gave to former Atlanta Braves left-hander Max Fried. But the Yankees have also made some aggressive trades, highlighted by their acquisition of former National League Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player Cody Bellinger.
Tigers’ Spencer Torkelson May be Expendable
The Yankees are still showing some degree of interest in Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman, the highest-profile free agent remaining unsigned. But they are not considered favorites to land Bregman. If they don’t, what is the Bronx Bombers next move, as they continue their campaign to add power bats?
According to report by CBS Sports, the addition of former Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres to the Detroit Tigers created a logjam in the Detroit infield — making at least one Tigers infielder expendable. That infielder appears to be first baseman Spencer Torkelson.
How did Torkelson, the No. 1 overall draft pick in baseball just five years ago, end up on the trading block? At Arizona State University, a scouting report described him as having “borderline elite raw power” that should make him a 30-plus home run hitter in Major League Baseball, with a “possibility” of 40-plus.
After a disappointing rookie year in 2022, Torkelson lived up to that billing in his sophomore season by belting 31 home runs, including 11 at the Tigers’ home of Comerica Park, rated by Baseball Savant as the 11th-most difficult park in which to homer.
But then the 25-year-old Petaluma, California, native fell off the table. He hit so poorly to start the 2024 season that he was sent down to the minor leagues on June 3, after failing to homer until May 12. He did not return to the bigs until August 17, when he recorded two hits in a 4-0 Tigers win over the Yankees.
Yankees Hot Corner Job in Transition
When the Tigers drafted Torkelson, they listed him not as a first baseman but as a third baseman. The Yankees hot corner job is still up in the air. With Torres gone, the position’s incumbent Jazz Chisolm Jr. seems likely to relocate to his natural position at second, leaving third base wide open.
The Yankees have DJ LeMahieu who can play third, but the organization has been disillusioned with LeMahieu and may even be looking at releasing him.
Torkelson also comes cheap. He is owed just $800,000 in 2025, and comes with three additional years of team control after that. With his 2024 slump, he would likely not command a high price in trade, either. The Yankees may consider a one-for-one deal, sending their No. 10 prospect, power-hitting outfielder Everson Pereira to Detroit.
Also working against Torkelson, when it comes to the Tigers keeping him, is the fact that he was drafted not by current Detroit president of baseball operations Scott Harris, but by his predecessor, Al Avila who was fired in August of 2022 when Torkelson and several other young players and free agent acquisitions failed to deliver on their potential, and the Tigers ended up with a dismal 66-96 season.
