3 reasons DJ LeMahieu needs to be Yankees’ No. 1 priority

2. LeMahieu is still in his prime

This is DJ LeMahieu’s prime. Use it all up, Yankees.

The Yankees brought LeMahieu to town as a 30-year-old from the Colorado Rockies, a franchise known for bloated offensive statistics. While the hope was LeMahieu could hit outside of Colorado, nobody could have expected what he has brought to the Yankees lineup.

There’s still a lot of pop left in LeMahieu’s bat even at 32 years old, and he has the kind of presence and approach at the plate that will enable him to be a consistent hitter well into his 30s. The Yankees have a lot of guys in the lineup who are feast or famine, but LeMahieu is a machine and can do it all. He can get a leadoff hit, he puts the ball in play when runners are on, he beats the shift, he can go yard, whatever you want.

Additionally, LeMahieu as we mentioned previously about his defensive versatility, the Yankees will have the option of shifting him over to first base if his fielding starts to regress with age (assuming he’s signed to a four- or five-year deal). But LeMahieu was a late-bloomer, so this seems to be the wheelhouse of his prime playing days.

He probably has two more at this peak level and will still be productive beyond that. This is what you want to pay for if you’re a front office, and given his age, LeMahieu won’t command anything that’s prohibitive in terms of contract length.

The Yankees will be getting top value here, so it’s worth it to pay up.