Yankees Ronald Torreyes Could Be Viable Starter at Third Base

Could utilityman Ronald Torreyes be the heir apparent at third base if the New York Yankees decide to dump veteran Chase Headley this winter?

New York Yankees rookie infielder Ronald Torreyes found himself starting at third base for the fourth straight day Saturday. Asked why he continued to start Torreyes over his veteran starter Chase Headley, Yankees manager Joe Girardi‘s explanation was short and to the point, telling reporters before Saturday’s game,”We’re going with the hot hand.”

The 32-year-old Headley had been dealing with an Achilles issue earlier in the month, which is how Torreyes got his foot in the door in the first place, but it seems the injury has nothing to do with his recent time on the bench.

Torreyes had barely played this season despite hanging onto a 25-man roster spot all the way since Opening Day. However, it seems like he’s caught the attention of Girardi or one of the team’s decision makers with his recent hot streak.

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With New York’s recent rebuilding efforts, it has been speculated they could look to move the two years and $26 million remaining on Headley’s contract this winter, but the problem is they don’t have an heir-apparent in the upper-minors to replace him.

This recent string of starts could be the Yankees way of auditioning Torreyes for the job. After his recent hot streak, the 23-year-old is hitting .286/.327/.439 (104 wRC+) in 104 plate appearances.

Somewhat incredibly, Torreyes has already played for six different organizations during his seven year professional career since being signed as a teenager out of Venezuela by the Cincinnati Reds. He compiled a .298/.353/.409 batting line over 2578 plate appearances during his climb up the minor league ladder.

Scouts have always regarded Torreyes as a guy who maybe could crack the last spot on a team’s bench (as he did this spring), but not someone who profiled as a starter. He also probably fits better as a second baseman than at third, where his arm strength is just barely adequate.

However Torreyes obviously has some potential on offense given what we’ve seen recently. He’s an excellent contact hitter who never strikes out. Jose Altuve keeps adding power, why not Torreyes?

For what it’s worth, Chris Mitchell’s KATOH system absolutely loves the scrappy infielder, projecting him for 5.2 WAR over his first six MLB seasons.  Mitchell also finds that a few of the players in history who had the most similar statistical seasons to Torreyes’s 2015 were Chuck Knoblauch, Aaron Hill, and Rey Sanchez. Not bad company.

Whether the Yankees are truly just playing the hot hand or grooming Torreyes for a larger role next year, it’s nice to see the little guy getting some playing time. Headley is having a nice year, but given the direction of the club, it probably makes sense to see what they have in Torreyes.