Remaining free agent infielders and Yankees trade options after Jorge Polanco signing

Division Series - San Diego Padres v Los Angeles Dodgers - Game 1
Division Series - San Diego Padres v Los Angeles Dodgers - Game 1 | Orlando Ramirez/GettyImages

The New York Yankees have some work to do to complete their infield picture ahead of spring training. Hopefully, that is something they realize and firmly believe.

Jorge Polanco complicated things a bit on Thursday when he signed a one-year pact with the Seattle Mariners, accepting a base salary of $7 million and a $750k buyout/option ahead of the 2026 season. In our wizened eyes, that's fully reasonable. In the eyes of the Yankees, $7 million was too much money to dissuade them from rolling with Oswaldo Cabrera, DJ LeMahieu and Oswald Peraza in an open spring competition.

Marcus Stroman will either be traded soon, or will be re-following the Yankees on Instagram in due time. If the latter happens, the Yankees will have more financial flexibility (gag me) to pursue infield options, opening up their possible avenues further.

At the moment, no matter how much money they have to work with, the pool of options remains stagnant and unimpressive.

Remaining Free Agent Infield Options for Yankees After Jorge Polanco Signing

We know the Yankees have spoken with and shown a degree of interest in Brendan Rodgers, formerly of the Colorado Rockies and non-tendered at the outset of the winter. Rodgers is primarly a second baseman, and though he has a Gold Glove to his name, defensive assessments of his skills are decidedly mixed. Signing Rodgers and moving Chisholm back to third does not feel terribly worthwhile.

Also available are Jose Iglesias, the 2024 Mets' spark plug, Yoan Moncada, Kiké Hernández, Whit Merrifield (who's mulling retirement), Paul DeJong, and Nicky Lopez. Below them are the minor-league deal-level options who probably fit worse than Cabrera/LeMahieu, including Tony Kemp, Nick Ahmed, and Joey Wendle.

If the Yankees intend to add WAR rather than subtract it, they should avoid those choices. Alex Bregman is also available. We do not expect the Yankees to look there.

Remaining Trade Options for Yankees After Jorge Polanco Signing

The calls for a Padres-money-saving Luis Arraez trade are only going to grow louder in the weeks to come; while Arraez is an imperfect player, he's also a batting champ three times running. He scuffles going to his right defensively, so he'll be less of a butcher at third than at second base, presumably. If/when Giancarlo Stanton needs a rest, he can absorb the DH role with aplomb. It makes sense for the Yankees to use their financial might to take chances like these.

Other potentially available names include 2024 All-Star Willi Castro, Angels infielder Luis Rengifo (who the Yankees reportedly targeted at last year's deadline), and Nolan Arenado of the Cardinals, a player the Yankees insist is not a three-year option. We understand why, but the remainder of the fleet doesn't exactly scream "viable alternative," at this point.

Our take? Expect another classic Yankees spring training position battle at a spot that could've easily been filled for months on end. "Oops, we almost built a full roster, but then didn't. It'll probably work out fine." We can hear it now.

Schedule