Yankees: Troy Tulowitzki was the best offseason acquisition

With a flurry of offseason moves made this winter, the Yankees acquired the talent they had sorely missed last season. The best acquisition, however, was shortstop Troy Tulowitzki.

Spring training has started and the Yankees bats surely are swinging. With only 26 days until opening day, there is plenty to be excited for. A brand new season, fresh new faces and another chance at making it to not only the postseason but all the way to the World Series. One of those new faces is Troy Tulowitzki.

Tulo was signed by the Yankees after being released by the Toronto Blue Jays. There’s still two years and $38 million left on the deal Toronto owes him. The Yankees got him for a cool $555K on a league minimum contract.

With Didi Gregorius expected to be out of the Yankees lineup until July or August, Tulowitzki will be the guy at shortstop most of the time. The 34-year-old has seen an ample amount of experience at the position, even as he is getting older. In 2016 and 2017, Tulowitzki played 1690.2 innings at shortstop and amassed a fielding percentage of .976.

The rest of the infield pales in comparison to the amount of time he has spent on the inner part of the diamond. His leadership will play a key part in grooming the men that field the other three positions, Miguel Andujar, Gleybor Torres, and Luke Voit.

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He has also shown that he is ready to play, in the field and through his first four ABs of spring training. With two home runs and four RBIs, jumping out in front of the pack early is a good sign for things to come. Especially after he had only played 66 games in 2017, and then not a single game in 2018 because of issues with both of his heels.

Another reason why his signing was so crucial and overall the best pickup of the winter, is that it gives Gregorius enough time to become fully healthy. There is no need for Gregorius to rush back into playing shape.

Especially if Tulo and the rest of the lineup can perform adequately enough to secure the top of the AL East. Of course, if Gregorius is healthy and fully able to play, put him back in at short and let him play, but Tommy John surgery is not something to tread lightly about.

Tulowitzki was a steal from the free agent market. He has shown he can still perform at the later stages of his career, and the Yankees are going to fully utilize that. The Yanks have found their shortstop for now, and he could very well put them in a great position once Gregorius comes back.