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Yankees: Predicting what NYY will do with open 40-man roster spot

By Adam Weinrib |
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK - MAY 18: Hoy Jun Park #24 of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders throws to first after grabbing a ground ball in the third inning against the Rochester Red Wings at Frontier Field on May 18, 2021 in Rochester, New York. (Photo by Joshua Bessex/Getty Images)
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK - MAY 18: Hoy Jun Park #24 of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders throws to first after grabbing a ground ball in the third inning against the Rochester Red Wings at Frontier Field on May 18, 2021 in Rochester, New York. (Photo by Joshua Bessex/Getty Images)
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PORT CHARLOTTE, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 24: A detail of Trey Amburgey #94 of the New York Yankees’ Franklin batting gloves during batting practice prior to the Grapefruit League spring training game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Charlotte Sports Park on February 24, 2019 in Port Charlotte, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
PORT CHARLOTTE, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 24: A detail of Trey Amburgey #94 of the New York Yankees’ Franklin batting gloves during batting practice prior to the Grapefruit League spring training game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Charlotte Sports Park on February 24, 2019 in Port Charlotte, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

Did you know the New York Yankees had an open 40-man roster spot to work with? It’s true! The rarity of all rarities silently emerged over the past week when the team unceremoniously activated Ryan LaMarre and then sent him straight to the sun, DFA’ing the outfielder in one fell swoop.

Remember a month ago when LaMarre was the team’s best center field option after Aaron Hicks’ injury, then hurt himself running in Texas, throwing the Yankees’ plans all out of wack?

Remember when he’s kind of still their best minor-league center field option? Yikes.

Regardless, the Yankees — a team full of holes and a franchise that keeps 40-man spots precious — secretly created another pathway to playing time, just a week and a half after removing Mike Ford to give Hard Hittin’ Chris Gittens a chance. So what comes next?

As we see it, there are three likely options for the roster spot…OK, four, but one’s incredibly boring.

The Yankees could add another piece of pitching depth to the 40-man in the interest of shuttling an extra body up and down. It could be old friend Adam Warren, who’s down at Triple-A working on a 2.45 ERA (and 1.47 WHIP). It could be ex-Marlins reliever Kyle Barraclough. It could even be lefty Matt Krook, a former Giants top pick who’s been newly promoted to Triple-A after burning through Somerset (44 Ks in 29.1 innings pitched).

OK, that’s not so boring, but it is predictable. Pitcher comes up, pitcher goes down. World keeps turning.

As for the other options? The way we see it, these three moves could all best utilize that 40-man spot by providing important extra depth to the big-league club as they try to turn a corner while undermanned.

These 3 options might be the Yankees’ best use of their 40-man roster spot.

Yankees 40-Man Roster Option: Trey Amburgey

We’ve discussed Amburgey’s case for promotion at length recently, but it still bears repeating (as Erik Kratz does every single day): the kid can hit.

If Amburgey played center field or batted lefty, there’s at least a solid chance he’d already be up, protected, and receiving reps in the Bronx. Instead, he’d be a round peg in.a square hole in center…but he is absolutely mashing.

Since we last spoke, he’s gotten his average up to .365 with a .402 OBP and 1.105 OPS in a small sample size at the highest level of the minors, which dwarfs the production of most Yankee outfielders.

We’re not sure we can glean much of anything from the usage patterns in the most recent series in Buffalo, but Clint Frazier was unearthed from the bench, hit a clutch game-winning, pinch-hit double in Game 1, then was never heard from him again. He’s been one of the worst-performing hitters in Major League Baseball, and perhaps his legendary bat speed returned for one night only, but it still seems to make more sense to give him regular plate appearances at Triple-A rather than truncated ones with the Bombers.

Frazier down, Amburgey up is one possible usage of the roster spot.

ROCHESTER, NEW YORK – MAY 18: Hoy Jun Park #24 of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders stands at second base during the first inning against the Rochester Red Wings at Frontier Field on May 18, 2021 in Rochester, New York. (Photo by Joshua Bessex/Getty Images)
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK – MAY 18: Hoy Jun Park #24 of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders stands at second base during the first inning against the Rochester Red Wings at Frontier Field on May 18, 2021 in Rochester, New York. (Photo by Joshua Bessex/Getty Images) /

Yankees 40-Man Roster Option: Hoy Jun Park

It’s fair if you’ve never considered Hoy Jun Park as anything more than a depth option for the Yankees previously, but the 2014 international signing has reached another level as a 25-year-old at Triple-A this year, too.

If you haven’t been to Scranton yet, we highly recommend it.

Park, who roves between second and shortstop, was an intriguing name before Gleyber Torres left Thursday’s game with a stiff lower back. After that departure, alarm bells went off, even as Aaron Boone tried to minimize his pain in the postgame.

For a team that could use an offensive spark and a lesson in situational hitting, Park would seem to be a perfectly patient addition. So far this season, in the midst of the hottest streak of his career, he’s hitting .321 with six homers, 22 RBI, seven stolen bases, a remarkable .465 OBP and a 1.034 OPS. Not a power hitter! And yet…here we are. He’s out-powering all the more vaunted Yankees hitters.

The Yanks could absolutely use a versatile infield option whose speed, peskiness and patience are his calling cards. Now that well-above-average power and extra-base skills have been added to the plate, we’re impatiently waiting for Park to arrive and take up this 40-man spot.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 12: Joey Gallo #13 of the Texas Rangers jogs to first base during the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on June 12, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 12: Joey Gallo #13 of the Texas Rangers jogs to first base during the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on June 12, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images) /

Yankees 40-Man Roster Option: Trade!

What the Yankees probably have planned for their open spot — if they’re smart — is a trade, sooner rather than later.

Let’s be honest. Everyone wants to see the Bombers get sparked by a major addition. If their “big move” is the promotion of a career minor-leaguer, will any of you be happy? Probably not. Did Gittens shake the foundation of your life?

OK, he actually seems like someone who could potentially be very impactful (even though Luke Voit’s about to take his lunch). But we digress.

The Yankees need roster flexibility, which they so rarely have, to pull off any midseason acquisitions they have planned, and after a series sweep (!) of Toronto, they’re probably back to firmly being buyers rather than tentative window-shoppers. The sooner Joey Gallo, or Ketel Marte, or Starling Marte, or…Adam Frazier (?) can get here, the better in order to maximize their return on investment.

The Yankees also have Brooks Kriske on the 40-man roster, who hasn’t been as valuable as anticipated. That’s a very vulnerable spot, and the Bombers could potentially acquire a second midseason addition, jettisoning Kriske and filling out the roster that way.

Whether it’s pitching depth, and exciting promotion from Triple-A of one of a pair of unexpected breakouts, or a trade that finally puts the league on notice, the wheels are in motion for the Yankees to act fast.

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