Remaining Free Agents Who Make Sense for the Yankees

Luis Valbuena

Another free agent that the Yankees were linked to during the Winter Meetings who is still on the board is 31-year-old infielder Luis Valbuena, who has quietly emerged as a solid power bat over the last three seasons with the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros.

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Valbuena hit .260/.357/.459 with 13 home runs and 40 RBI in 342 plate appearances for the ‘Stros in 2016. He has primarily played third base in Houston, but has seen action at first, second, and left field as well during his nine-year big league career.

The Yankees may seem like an odd-fit for Valbuena because he’s presumably looking for a starting third base job. One possibility is New York could deal their incumbent starter Chase Headley and replace him with Valbuena, but that seems like something of a lateral move.

Valbuena will likely be a little cheaper and a little better than Headley, but coordinating the two moves is complicated enough that the potential payoff may not be enough to make it worthwhile or realistic.

An alternative possibility is the front office brings Valbuena in as a super-utility option to backup a number of the Baby Bombers who will be seeing their first extended big league action in 2016.

There is also considerable injury risk in the lineup that Valbuena could act as a safety next against. Greg Bird‘s shoulder is a huge question mark at first base, Matt Holliday has become brittle in his old age, and Chase Headley’s back problems are bound to flare up again at some point.

Next: Best and Worst of the Yankees' Winter Meetings

If I were Cashman, I would promise Valbuena that he would play everyday, but would rotate around the infield and outfield corners providing regular days off. For something reasonably like two years and $12 million, New York would considerably improve their team depth and give themselves another quality power bat in the middle of their lineup.

Luis Valbuena

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