3 players most likely to become Yankee Killers in 2022

2. Eduardo Escobar

After Francisco Lindor, Javier Báez and James McCann all did it to the Yankees in 2021, it’d only be natural for the newest free-swinging, yet powerful Met to join in on the action.

Escobar has never caused the Yankees too much trouble, but remember: this isn’t about logic and reason! It’s about predicting your next gut feeling. And, besides, he was on the Minnesota Twins! That undoes any amount of magic that being on the Mets should now amplify. It’s science.

Career against the Yanks, Escobar has 10 XBH (three homers) in 118 at-bats, but his fearlessness and propensity to come through in big moments will likely be amplified at Citi Field next year. Can’t you just see him sliding effortlessly into Báez’s spot and teaming with Lindor to cause Brian Cashman misery? After all, Cash never even looked their way.

Lindor was supposed to be the Yankees’ preferred shortstop solution, and yet they weren’t willing to give the Mets what it took to snag him last offseason (very little!). Boom, six months later he can’t hit anyone except Chad Green.

Now, the flamboyant Escobar is next in line coming off a 2.4-WAR, 109 OPS+ campaign split between Milwaukee and Arizona. You don’t think he’ll light up a bit now that he’s in the spotlight on a far bigger stage? The Yankees could use a versatile infield/outfield bat. They didn’t budge. And now, it turns into a grudge.

1. Corey Kluber

It’s time for Michael Wacha to pass his Rays torch on to a new thorn in the Yankees’ side.

What’s that? Wacha’s staying in the division, too? He’s simply going to the Red Sox? Joy.

I know it’s reductive at this point to shrug in the general direction of the Rays’ underwhelming pitching moves and simply say, “Eh, it’ll work out,” but you know what? It usually does! And mostly against the Bombers.

Wacha was otherwise a disaster last season (5.05 ERA after a 6.62 mark with the Mets the year prior), but against New York? 1.66 ERA and 25 Ks in 21.2 innings pitched, which sounds like a “small sample size,” but is actually relatively significant compared to his overall body of work last year (124.2 innings in total, about 1/6 of his season!).

We wish him well in Boston — well, no we don’t, but we’re going to get his absolute best, regardless of what we wish. Now, it’s time to turn that Incensed Wacha Energy on Corey Kluber.

Outside of a brief stretch of relevance in May capped by a no-hitter against the Texas Rangers, Kluber did not look like his old self. He didn’t provide much length; he was typically good for four innings and two or three earned runs per start. He was prone to a one-inning implosion. He was rarely even on the mound. It was the kind of calculated and expensive risk the Yankees are supposed to be able to absorb, except then they spent a good deal of the rest of the offseason crying about how his cost was un-absorbable. Oops!

Now, he’s a Ray. We have no reason to believe he’s healthy and will make any sort of return to relevance other than the preceding sentence. I’ll write it again. He’s a Ray.

If he were a Twin, we wouldn’t be predicting this whatsoever, nor a White Sox, Guardian, or Tiger. Since he’s wearing that damn TB, he’ll be dynamite AND available. And you all knew it as soon as the news broke, too.

3 roster moves that would ruin Yankees’ season before it starts

These three roster moves would ruin the New York Yankees' season before it even begins. Yes, Andrelton Simmons is prominently involved.