5 key areas Yankees can still improve without making a blockbuster addition

It's certainly easy to be disappointed by the New York Yankees' lack of initiative when it comes to chasing top-of-market stars this offseason. After all, these are the Yankees, they're supposed to make splashes, right?

Still, the baseline here is a talented team that, aside from potentially Cody Bellinger, hasn't suffered any substantial losses. If there is truly a budget in place that prevents the Yankees from meeting Bellinger's exorbitant asking price or making any other blockbuster moves, there are still ways that the club can improve on the small scale that can add up to create sizable results.

Here are a few avenues the club could explore to address its weaknesses without breaking the bank or making a huge splash.

The Yankees can add right-handed balance by pursuing these three bargain free agents

Cashman has stated that he wants to get more platoon-oriented to allow Aaron Boone the opportunity to exploit matchups while also adding right-handed balance to the lineup. The club has already made strides in that direction, re-upping with Amed Rosario ostensibly to start against southpaws at the hot corner.

With that said, more is needed, and three players fit the bill. The easiest addition to envision is outfielder Austin Hays. The Yankees' interest in Hays has long been known, and adding him to the roster would allow Jasson Domínguez (or Spencer Jones) the opportunity to develop at the major league level while bringing in a guy who absolutely mashes lefties. Hays has a career .819 OPS against left-handed pitching, and absolutely demolished southpaws with a .319/.400/.549 line against them in 2025.

The next player isn't quite as clean a fit, but he solves the need for another right-handed bat while also improving the club's bat-to-ball skills, which stand to take a hit if Bellinger departs. That player is none other than old friend Miguel Andújar.

Yankee fans might have mixed feelings about Andújar, who placed second in the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year voting while wearing pinstripes, losing out on the honor to Shohei Ohtani. From that promising debut, Andújar's pitiful defense, combined with offensive inconsistencies, caused the Yankees to eventually sour on him, sending him on a baseball odyssey that's consisted of several stops over the last few years.

But there are a few things that Andújar can do. One is make contact, with a stellar 91.3% zone contact rate for his career. The second is annihilate lefties. For his career, he slashes .297/.332/.475 when he has the platoon advantage, and in 2025, he took that to another level with an otherworldly .389/.409/.578 line. The defense might not be pretty, but Andujar could serve as a right-handed caddy for Ben Rice, while also adding additional depth at third and in the outfield corners.

Finally, the third right-handed bat to consider is Mitch Garver to add balance behind the plate. The soon-to-be 35-year-old has never been known for his defense and has seen age take a toll, but he can still hit lefties, posting a .718 OPS against them in 2025. Moving out of Seattle and into a more hitter-friendly environment won't hurt either.

The Yankees can shore up the rotation by trading for this Cincinnati Reds innings-eater

Dreaming of signing Tatsuya Imai or swinging a big trade for Freddy Peralta? Most fans are, yet what the Yankees truly need is someone who can provide more stability in the rotation than the undynamic duo of Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn.

Finding someone who can bring certainty while the Yankees await the return of Carlos Rodón and figure out what they have in post-Tommy John surgery Gerrit Cole is what really matters, and a hurler like Brady Singer of the Cincinnati Reds fits the bill.

Singer is consistent if unspectacular, putting up league-average strikeout, walk, and home run rates while pitching to a 4.03 ERA and 3.98 FIP last season. That might not wow you, but it's enough to keep the team in games and give them the chance to pull out victories.

Singer is in his final year of arbitration, and there's some thought that the small-market Reds would really like to get his salary off their books, making him affordable in a trade. As only a one-year commitment, he'd allow the Yankees the opportunity to see where their rotation cornerstones are at, while giving them a chance to make a bigger splash for a front-of-the-rotation arm next winter with
Rodón and Cole coming closer to the end of their deals.

The Yankees can supercharge their bench by signing versatile utility man Willi Castro

It's been a while since the Yankees employed a true super utility player on their roster, instead opting for a washed-up DJ LeMahieu, a busted Oswald Peraza, and fringe MLB players like Pablo Reyes. Changing that by adding a guy who is near-starting caliber, but can play all over the diamond, would go a long way toward improving the depth, keeping everyone fresh, and weathering an injury storm that may roll in.

Free agent Willi Castro fits that bill. As a switch-hitter, he can bring balance to the lineup, and his ability to play nearly every position on the diamond would help substantially.

Castro's been mostly an above-average hitter in recent years. He posted a 107 wRC+ in 2023 and followed that up with a 106 mark in 2024. He was on his way to posting another solid offensive performance, with a 109 wRC+ with the Minnesota Twins, before he was traded to the Chicago Cubs at the 2025 trade deadline.

With the Cubs, Castro got less playing time than he was accustomed to, and in 34 games, he recorded an abysmal 40 wRC+. That will help depress his price tag, but the last two-and-a-half years of solid performance with the bat should alleviate the concerns that his Cubs tenure might cause.

Signing Castro should prevent the likes of Jorbit Vivas from seeing the light of day, and the versatility he can provide will give Boone endless options to run out the best nine on any given day.