Top Five Best Fits for the Yankees on the Free Agent Market

Carlos Beltran

Despite what the rumor mill would lead you to believe, the Yankees are not expected to pursue the top bats on the market like Yoenis Cespedes and Edwin Encarnacion this winter, which makes sense. The team has a ton of MLB-ready position player talent, so locking themselves into more long-term deals that could block one of their potential phenoms doesn’t make much sense.

On the other hand, if the team can upgrade their offense for 2017 for just a little cash on a one or two year deal, why shouldn’t they? Carlos Beltran stands out as a guy who could benefit next year’s club without hurting the rebuilding effort. He fits better as the team’s primary DH than Brian McCann, and if the team needs his roster spot for someone like Clint Frazier in the second half, he can easily be moved to the bench or even traded again.

Beltran seemed to love his time in New York, has always been a Yankees fan, and was a terrific mentor to a number of the club’s young players last year. Even a rebuilding club needs veteran leaders, and by all accounts Beltran has been extremely generous about sharing his time and knowledge with the next generation.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that he can still rake either. His numbers stack up well against any of the available bats. Between New York and Texas, Beltran hit .295/.337/.513 with 29 home runs and 93 RBI. He was easily the Yankees best hitter for much of the year and finished in the club’s top ten leaders in rWAR despite playing less than a 100 games with the Bombers.

The Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Rangers are all expected to pursue him after having interest at the trade deadline. Beltran will turn 40 in April, so its unlikely he gets a multi-year offer, but a one year $12-15 million deal seems likely.