Yankees: Riskiest Contracts on the Payroll Right Now

Yankees GM Brian Cashman has a lot of money tied up right now in risky deals.

We’ve seen a number of bad contracts on the Yankees’ payroll over the years, with Jacoby Ellsbury’s deal still making us twitch after six years. But fans might overlook the fact that New York has some current (and still active) risky deals, despite the team performing admirably over the last three seasons and adding Gerrit Cole a few months back.

General manager Brian Cashman has used the organization’s deep pockets over the years, but he’s been forced to scale back as of late (with the exception of Cole and one other player on this list), leaving a lot of his work to be done on the trade market. He’s done a great job on that front, but these three contracts should still concern Yankee fans to an extent.

Yankees’ riskiest contracts: Aaron Hicks

Can Aaron Hicks justify his seven-year contract with the New York Yankees?

Speaking of Cashman’s wizardry on the trade market, he acquired Aaron Hicks from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for catcher John Ryan Murphy in November of 2015. While Hicks has shown flashes of greatness with his defense and powerful bat, he’s still slashing just .242/.341/.433 in the Bronx and has dealt with numerous injuries, including an elbow issue that required Tommy John surgery this offseason. He played in just 88 games back in 2017, 59 contests this past year, and will likely miss part of 2020 (whenever baseball returns) in his recovery from TJ, which makes the seven-year, $70 million extension he signed before the 2019 season even more puzzling. Hicks is tied to New York through 2025 (his age-35 season). It could certainly end up working out, but giving him an average of $10 million per season for that long when he’s been unable to stay on the field and be consistent is the definition of risky.

Yankees’ riskiest contracts: Luis Severino

Luis Severino’s extension looks worse for the Yankees now than it did in 2019.

There’s no question Sevy is beloved among fans in the Bronx, but the four-year, $40 million extension he inked before the 2019 season now doesn’t look so great. He pitched in just three games last year due to shoulder, lat and elbow issues, with the latter forcing him to undergo Tommy John surgery and miss all of 2020 (in addition to a portion of 2021). Considering he’ll be a free agent after 2022, this deal sadly feels like a complete waste — not because of Severino’s play, just merely because of the circumstances. The 2021 season will largely consist of Severino looking to get back on track from rehab and up to game speed, with 2022 being the last full year he could potentially pitch for the Bombers. The only silver lining here is that if he performs well in part of 2021 and all of 2022, the Yankees have a $15 million club option they can exercise for 2023. Nonetheless, this extension is shrouded in uncertainty due to Severino’s health, which essentially makes the majority of it a sunk cost.