New York Yankees’ 2022 projected lineup is completely wild

NJ.com, on behalf of all of us, thank you for making wholesale changes to the Yankees before the 2022 season and thank you for making them totally insane.

May we ask…any new pitchers here too, or no?

The Yankees — who we thought would be a championship contender in 2021 — clearly aren’t a finished product yet. The team looks “more athletic” when they’re socking countless home runs, sure, but there’s not enough power anymore, and there was never enough defense, even at full-strength.

All that said…we expect an infielder to be added via free agency. We expect the margins to be filled. We expect either Gio Urshela or Luke Voit to depart. But we…did not…expect all this, as NJ.com apparently does.

Per this very fanciful projection, the Yankees will be moving DJ LeMahieu permanently to first base this offseason, which is certainly the least wild of their proposed maneuvers.

By my count, we’ve got two high-profile free agent additions, two position switches, a major trade piece, and a brand-new manager as Aaron Boone’s contract expires.

How do *we* feel about the Yankees’ projected 2022 lineup?

Show us the pitchers! Show us the bench! Let’s do the whole damn thing!

As far as realism goes, Corey Seager feels like the move most likely to actually go down, as long as he’s the organization’s preferred star shortstop. You may remember Seags from winning both the NLCS MVP and World Series MVP, as well as being left-handed.

Unfortunately, he’s hitting just .265 in an injury-plagued walk year this season, so hopefully everyone forgot about him. A one-year prove-it deal should get it done!

For real, though, the one downside of Seager is that people aren’t positive he’ll be a shortstop long-term, which is difficult because…Gleyber Torres won’t be a shortstop in the long- or short-term, and DJ LeMahieu is also here forever. However, Oswald Peraza and Anthony Volpe coming up the food chain might just change the equation, as long as we’ve all accepted Torres won’t be here forever.

In the meantime, gawk at the potential Yankee Stadium overlap in Seager’s profile!

OK, where were we? Ah, right, Raul Ibañez is the manager now?! How’d that happen?!

A Ketel Marte trade will likely make more sense for Arizona this offseason, considering their star is currently laid up with a very Yankees-like injury, but sure, we could see the fit. Michael Conforto? Now that’s a revenge buy-low candidate if we’ve ever seen one. This year has been brutal on the formerly-blossoming lefty bat, and his 77 OPS+ and two (two!) homers make him more Clint Frazier than Joey Gallo.

If the Yankees can get him for two years and $24 million on a pillow contract (no way), then perhaps they should engage…but at that price, why wouldn’t Steve Cohen just gobble him up? Heading back to the Mets or off to the West Coast (Mariners, near his alma mater Oregon State?) both seem like more likely outcomes.

Man…if the Yankees really look at this core now that things are actually becoming challenging and decide to go with a first-time manager again…they’d better be right.

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