3 Yankees free agents who definitely won’t return in 2023

1. Andrew Benintendi

After coming over from Kansas City in exchange for three intriguing pitching prospects who were buried in the Yankees system, Andrew Benintendi started slowly (to put it mildly) before eventually finding his footing and clutching up for a few key wins before his wrist betrayed him and fractured mid-swing.

Still, Benintendi enjoyed somewhat of a mid-career renaissance, and would be a nice piece for the Yankees’ outfield moving forward on a two-or-three-year deal, even with plenty of mouths to feed out there (and Oswaldo Cabrera firmly inserting himself into the conversation).

That said, there are plenty of factors working against a reunion here. For one thing … uh, how do we put this … the outfielder who wears No. 99 will probably be the Yankees’ negotiating priority, first and foremost. The Yankees will probably not be eager to prep a three-year, $45 million offer for another outfielder while waiting on Aaron Judge’s decision, especially one who’s been mostly a luxury item during his short time in the Bronx.

Benintendi probably won’t want to wait for Judge to reset the market, either, as plenty of mid-tier teams will be clamoring for his services, likely at a slightly higher rate than what the Yankees might offer anyway. The 28-year-old would immediately improve the young Guardians, as well as his hometown St. Louis Cardinals.

Benny won’t be a sexy signing this offseason, but will be a solid value play. The Yankees will probably come up short here, if they even have the time to try at all.

Ranking players Yankees should consider signing to contract extensions

The New York Yankees have some players that can be extended. Some aren't worth it whatsoever, but let's rank the ones who might be.