Yankees: 3 surprise rival free agent fits nobody’s talking about

2. Corey Dickerson

Remember when the Toronto Blue Jays added Corey Dickerson alongside Adam Cimber in a deal with the Miami Marlins midseason, and rumor had it Dickerson was just a throw-in and wouldn’t be able to return before the end of the season? Just a…salary-matching thing?

Well, smash cut to Dickerson raking (110 OPS+) north of the border in 46 games and becoming a key factor down the stretch. Cool how he was free of charge! Neat!

This offseason, the Yankees could rectify their Dickerson mistake and add him to the outfield rotation — with the benefit of the short porch — by outbidding Toronto, a team with many other concerns. Marcus Semien is departing. So’s Robbie Ray. Do the Jays want one or both back? Do they want to replace Semien with another high-dollar shortstop, now that Austin Martin is in the Minnesota Twins system? Lots of questions, very few answers that involve making significant time for Dickerson’s cash settlement.

The lefty swinger is coming off a two-year, $17.5 million deal, and could command something similar this time around. Unbeknownst to many, he’s actually been one of the more consistent bats in the game in this fourth outfielder role for the past several years. His only seasons since 2014 with an OPS+ below league average (100)? 2020’s shortened season in Miami (91) and 2021 (99, just missed it). At worst, Dickerson will likely be an average player for the next two years, but his ceiling is far higher, especially in the right envionment.

If you don’t think the Yankees could use a 115 OPS+ from the left side/off the bench to play ~100 games next season, you didn’t watch the 2021 team. We would’ve advocated for the acquisition of Dickerson midway through the season if we’d only known he was actually healthy and available. Now it’s time to rectify that mistake.