There is no reason for this brutal bench piece to be on the Yankees roster

Just because the New York Yankees have been battered by injuries in the thinnest area of the roster doesn't mean they shouldn't aim higher with the bottom portion of their bench. The losses of Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Oswaldo Cabrera coincided with DJ LeMahieu's return, but that hasn't prevented Pablo Reyes, Jorbit Vivas and Oswald Peraza from receiving significant playing time as the Yankees try to spread reps around between a parade of underwhelming players. Of all of these options, Reyes has the lowest upside, and should be the first one to go.

Neither Vivas nor Peraza has played a starring role this season, but both players are young former top prospects who haven't received consistent playing time at the big-league level ... ever. Vivas was yo-yo'd last season, and has finally carved out a niche for himself (though, again, he's looked middling at best). Peraza was anointed the shortstop of the future before Anthony Volpe took his crown, and he scuffled in 2023 and 2024 without a big-league carrot to chase. He may not have a long-term role with the Yankees, but he's without options, and the possibility of a higher ceiling at least exists there.

But Reyes? Reyes has no Yankees future. Reyes doesn't have any undiscovered Yankees pedigree. Reyes has four hits in 25 at-bats across seven weeks, pinch-running from time to time, but hardly doing much else. His glove has also been untrustworthy, tainting Max Fried's lone stinker against the Brewers.

With so many struggling infield options on the same first-place roster, the one with the lowest ceiling should get the boot for a fifth outfielder who can do much more for the current Yankees.

Yankees should cut ties with Pablo Reyes, who's threatening to somehow make it to June on the roster

The Yankees allowed Reyes' spring surge to dictate their final roster battle. At the time, it represented flexibility; Peraza entered camp as a shoo-in, but they let performance change their decision-making calculus.

Now, they'll need to let the outcomes guide them in the opposite direction. Reyes has the flexibility to cover ground in the outfield, but he doesn't do it expertly. Trent Grisham has been so good that he's redefined the fourth outfielder role, and the Yankees have been able to hyper focus on filling out the infield with depth pieces.

Unfortunately, none of them are clicking, and the need for a high-upside winner is more dire than ever. That means, although Cabrera's horrific injury bought Reyes a bit more time, the Yankees need to leap the line sooner rather than later and find a genuine upgrade.