Projecting New York Yankees’ Opening Day roster for 2022

If the New York Yankees are given the green light to play the 2022 MLB season by Rob Manfred and the owners (pretty please!), they’ll open the shortened offseason with a decent infrastructure in place, but plenty of work to do before things are settled.

Don’t let anyone tell you the Yankees have no chance of contending during the evil Boone regime, but they’re certainly staring down the barrel of fourth place, as currently constructed.

There’s a hole at first base and up the middle at every position, and the projected rotation isn’t exactly accident-proof.

For the purposes of this exercise, we’ve chosen to be modestly optimistic while also exercising caution. No, the Yankees will not be entering 2022 having forgotten entirely to address these gaping holes. We’re also not filling every gap with an All-Star and calling it a day.

It also must be noted that this is an Opening Day roster projection. Not a best-case scenario projection. Not a playoff projection. Not a deadline projection. This is the crew we expect the Yankees to open the campaign and compete with before taking any leaps for in-season tweaks.

It also takes into account players we don’t believe will be healthy enough to open the season on the active roster.

Now, if the season starts in May? That might be a different story, though we expect the Bombers to give Jameson Taillon a few rehab trips at the minor-league level no matter when the campaign begins. He’ll help the Yankees plenty this season, but he shouldn’t be on anyone’s Opening Day projection.

With the rumor mill theoretically at rest and the two sides of any free agent negotiation barely talking right now, here’s how we see the Yankees beginning the season. Theoretically, this should be a championship-centric campaign, and though things may feel bleak right now, the Opening Day squad could get there with the right in-season tweaks. Think like the Atlanta Braves. Be the Atlanta Braves.

Projecting the 2022 New York Yankees Opening Day roster.

Yankees Starting Rotation (5)

• Gerrit Cole
• Luis Severino
• Chris Bassitt
• Jordan Montgomery
• Nestor Cortes Jr.

Yes, certainly a logic leap has been taken here! Projecting Luis Severino to take starters’ reps throughout the year after a largely-absent 2019, 2020 and 2021 is certainly a risk, but remember, this is an Opening Day thought. We can’t count on Severino to hold firm for the entire season, but we do know the Yankees should intend to open the season with him in the rotation.

If the Bombers begin 2022 with Severino in a bullpen role, they’ve either made a monumental, Luis Castillo-esque move to replace him, or they’ve waved the white flag.

As for the rest of the bunch, we’ll predict Luis Gil begins at Triple-A once more, and will make our first all-caps MOVE of the winter by bringing Chris Bassitt of the Oakland A’s in as our bulldog No. 3 starter.

As you’ll see later, we think the Yankees and A’s will hook up for a moderately large deal this offseason, but probably not the one you’re hoping for.

Long Live Nasty Nestor, who will ideally be relegated to swingman duty by midseason, but clocks in as our No. 5 starter on Opening Day. A meteoric rise indeed. Whatever it takes to make sure he’s lined up along the foul lines, doffing his cap to the crowd and showing off that sweet, sweet mustache.

Yankees Infield (7)

• Gary Sánchez
• Kyle Higashioka
• DJ LeMahieu
• Gleyber Torres
• Anthony Rizzo
• Matt Chapman
• Gio Urshela

Yeah, I think the Yankees really are going to do the Matt Chapman thing. It’s the first of the stopgap shortstop rumors I earnestly trust.

They can’t do Andrelton Simmons. They just can’t. Isiah Kiner-Falefa is my mental runner-up, but the fact that it’s extremely clear they were talking to Oakland before the freezeout indicates that this is their master plan. IKF certainly fits the bill of a defense-first, Gold Glove stopgap, but based on the incoming 40-man roster crunch (an annual tradition at this point), you’d assume the Yanks would want to do bigger business with the A’s than flip a faraway prospect for Kiner-Falefa in a separate deal with Texas.

In the Yankees’ defense, it would create theoretical versatility to hold onto both Gio Urshela and Chapman and deploy both men on the left side of the infield a few times a week to lock it down; in the other games, LeMahieu would play third, and either Chapman or Urshela would be at short.

I so badly wanted to insert Oswaldo Cabrera here in the Tyler Wade role, but not just yet. Not on Opening Day. If Urshela’s traded, he’s the odds-on favorite to slide in, though.

Since this is the A’s trade we’re pitching, that means our projections say goodbye to Matt Olson and reengage with Anthony Rizzo on what ultimately becomes an incentive-based three-year, $40 million deal. Lots of people will be furious if this comes to pass. We will not, though we’ll be mourning the mistreatment of Luke Voit for quite a while.

BONUS PROJECTION: Voit to the Brewers for one top-20 prospect and a lottery ticket

Yankees Outfield (5)

• Aaron Judge
• Giancarlo Stanton
• Joey Gallo
• Aaron Hicks
• Ender Inciarte

The easiest projection of all, by leaps and bounds.

There’s a chance the Yankees run with four outfielders over five. Hell, there’s a chance Aaron Hicks doesn’t even physically make it to Opening Day.

As of now, this is the highest-likelihood projection of them all. Swap Inciarte out for Free Agent TBD, if you’d like. Or swap him out for Cabrera in the infield or German buried in the bullpen. Bottom line is, four of these five names will make anyone’s projected roster (presuming health), and if the Yankees forget to grab insurance for Hicks, that’d be malpractice.

Our preference for the outfield, as stated, is Seiya Suzuki in left, Joey Gallo as the primary center fielder, and Hicks roving in the background as a fourth outfielder. Ken Davidoff predicted the Suzuki fit earlier this week, too, though, at this point, we’re fairly confident he’s going to Boston.

If this were an idealized outfield, then sure. We’d take a stand. We’d put an additional free agent star out there.

For now? We’ll just predict that an Aaron Judge six-year, $180 million extension breaks the ice when the lockout ends, and the Yankees go to work with these familiar names.

7 Yankees facing uncertain futures heading into 2022

The New York Yankees have a ton of guys hitting free agency after the 2022 season and we truly don't know what the future holds for them.