Randal Grichuk's numbers have gotten out of hand and Yankees fans are stunned

When the New York Yankees let Randal Grichuk go at the end of April, there wasn't a single upset fan. Grichuk started the year 0-for-13, and although he hit .333 over his final seven games with the team, we had seen enough. It was time to move on from the 34-year-old.

Or so we thought. Grichuk latched on with the Chicago White Sox and picked up where he left off, making it look as though the Yankees made a rash decision amid his surge.

Still, the sample size was small. This was a guy who posted an 82 wRC+ a year ago. His job was to mash lefties, but all he did was post an 89 wRC+ against southpaws. He subtracted a total of 0.4 fWAR from the Kansas City Royals down stretch after replacement-level production for the Arizona Diamondbacks prior to the 2025 trade deadline.

There was a reason why FanGraphs compared trading for him and players like him to shopping in the $5 DVD bin at Walmart in their trade deadline wrap-up analysis. And there was a reason why the Yankees were able to sign him to a minor league deal deep into the winter.

The only problem? Grichuk has continued his tear, making it look as if New York made a huge mistake. One that fans can't believe has come to pass.

Yankees might have miscalculated on Randal Grichuk, but sample size remains too small

The updated numbers for Grichuk now are 19 games with Chicago and a .300/.333/.625 line with four homers over 42 plate appearances. So while it's easy to see this as a blunder, it's important to remember that in 16 games with the Yankees he hit .194/.212/.323 with no homers in 33 plate appearances.

The samples couldn't be more disparate, yet the size of each is roughly the same. That means the safe answer here is that we can't know for sure which is truly the real Grichuk. What we can say for sure is that he's a player in his mid-30s who had a resurgent 2024 campaign with a 139 wRC+, but otherwise has been on the decline since 2021.

Meanwhile, the Yankees haven't truly been hurt by the loss of depth. Paul Goldschmidt has done plenty of lefty mashing for New York this season, slashing .264/.361/.509 with six homers and handling righties and lefties as he's stepped up in Giancarlo Stanton's absence.

Versatile pieces like Amed Rosario, who has an .851 OPS against lefties and an .835 OPS against righties, and Jose Caballero are able to handle part-time duty in the outfield corners at least until Jasson Dominguez comes back.

The need for a right-handed-hitting outfielder is further diminished by Cody Bellinger's reverse splits, as the veteran has posted an .894 OPS against same-handed pitchers versus an .829 mark when he has the platoon advantage.

All of these players are more balanced than Grichuk, who has managed a measly .530 OPS in the 29 plate appearances he has against righties this year.

Bottom line, the Yankees may or may not have lost a quality player in Grichuk. We'll need more time to tell. But in the meantime, they've also proven they have sufficient depth without him. It's annoying to see him having success elsewhere, but that doesn't really matter at the end of the day.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow