Yankees outfield is crowded; what to do?

With Spring Training officially here, it is time for the positional battles to begin. The New York Yankees, although considered one of the better teams in the American League, still have a few holes to fill before Opening Day.

The Yankees are still seeking a starting second baseman and a starting third baseman. And yes, I know that it may seem as though the Yanks are ready for Miguel Andújar to take over the reigns at third; and I am sure we will see Gleyber Torres called up at some point to make some starts at second.

But with the addition of Brandon Drury, the battles tighten even more. Drury having the ability to play both second and third will be resourceful down the stretch while also limiting the playing time of both Andújar and Torres.

But why dig into the farm system? Why call up Torres, who had Tommy John Surgery halfway through last season?

Perhaps the better route would be to look at the crowded Yankee outfield. After the acquisition of Giancarlo Stanton back in December, the Yankees have six potential starting outfielders. The problem here is that only three can start each game, four if you include the DH spot.

That’ll leave the Yankees with two starting-worthy outfielders on the bench, wasting not only their abilities and development but also payroll.

And for those of you that want the young prospects to start in the majors over the “washed up” players, one of those benched outfielders would most likely be the former first-round pick, Clint Frazier.

I am proposing a positional change of some of these outfielders. Now I know what some of you are thinking but hear me out. Added depth couldn’t hurt the team, plus this wouldn’t be the first time a player would be experimenting with a new position either to play more or just to improve the team.

Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury

Well, since both Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury are left-handed, the only other position which they should play, if any at all, would be first base. But something tells me that the two of them should stay in the outfield.

Being smaller, faster guys, both Gardner and Ellsbury seem to be the perfect fit as outfielders. To top that off, having each won a Gold Glove Award for their outfield work, Gardner and Ellsbury were seen at one point as being within the top three of defensive outfielders in a season.

For these reasons as well as any others I am sure you can think of, Gardner and Ellsbury should stay in the outfield.

So where does that leave us now? Well, we still have to look at the twin towers of Judge and Stanton, as well as the young Clint Frazier and the record holder for the fastest throw from an outfielder, Aaron Hicks.

Being that Hicks saved 15 runs last season in just 88 games, he seems to be a sound option in the outfield. Not to mention those 15 runs came in eighth in MLB of all outfielders, Mookie Betts coming in first with 31 defensive runs saved.

But do not overlook the uber-athletic Hicks, as he averages almost the same number of runs saved on defense per game as Betts.

Aaron Hicks and Clint Frazier

Hicks also is almost identical to the average height and weight of all MLB outfield Gold Glove winners. He also has decent speed, and as we are all familiar with his cannon for an arm. Hicks is a good fit for the Yankees’ outfield, being capable of playing all three outfield positions.

But if Hicks were to remain in the outfield, then where does Frazier land?

Well, Frazier is young, 23 years of age. He is also very aggressive and athletic, as we can all see from watching him play. Many scouts see future power out of Frazier as a result of his build and aggression. It seems only logical to try to figure out a way to get the phenom more playing time.

But Frazier might not find this playing time in the outfield. Being right-handed could help Frazier in this aspect as he could potentially play second base, third base or shortstop.

Nowhere near as large as his counterparts Judge and Stanton, Frazier does not seem to be the person fit to play first, especially with his above average speed. Therefore, I propose Frazier try his hand at second.

Seen by some scouts as having difficulty tracking balls in the outfield, an infield swap could be for the best. On top of that, “good” fielding second baseman is not all that great. The average Gold Glove second baseman saves under two runs a season. That’s not all that much.

If Frazier were to hit two more solo home runs than last season, he would surmount the average defensive ability of “great” fielding second baseman.

To put these numbers in comparison, Gold Glove winner and former Yankees’ second baseman, Robinson Cano, saved zero runs last season on defense.

Plus, with Frazier at second, he will have the shortest throw to make to first. The primary difficulty in playing second base would be turning double plays, but with Frazier’s aggressive attitude, perhaps he will only see this as another challenge to surmount.

Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton

Of the remaining “outfielders,” Stanton and Judge do not fit the typical middle infield physique. That being said, anything is possible; maybe Stanton would be a great fielding second baseman. But judging by previous performances and size of the “twin towers,” the two look most similar to Gold Glove first and third basemen.

Both very tall and muscular, Judge and Stanton match with the larger generic profile of the corner infielders. But besides the physicality of good corner infielders, generally, mediocre fielding corner infielders still make do and perform well. Or at least we think they do.

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On average, Gold Glove third basemen save just under three runs a season. That’s not all that much for the best fielders. And first basemen are even worse, averaging around one defensive run saved per year. Taking that into account, average defensive ability corner infielders should be even worse than that, right?

Judge and Stanton both also closely replicate the average DEF rating via Fangraphs of Gold Glove first basemen and outfielders (since 1980), so perhaps the two do belong in the outfield.

With the crowded Yankees’ outfield, it wouldn’t hurt to test these two players out at the corner spots, at least during practices, maybe even Spring Training.

On top of that, defense is not that important in baseball. Last season, Andrelton Simmons saved the most runs through his defense; 32. AND, only 77 players’ defense last season saved any runs at all. In a league of 750+ players, that’s pretty measly.

Next: Yankees Greg Bird: Should he regularly bat third in the lineup?

Having the ability to play either of the Yankees’ two powerhouses in the infield would greatly improve the Yanks’ lineup, as newly acquired Brandon Drury has seen considerable playing time at second base, which could allow Judge or Stanton to play third base, leaving an extra infield spot open for grabs.

Or even allowing for players to get days off here and there (Greg Bird), and focusing on keeping the team healthy for a playoff run