Yankees in line for an uncomfortable conversation amid Trent Grisham's spring scuffle

There are 22 million reasons why the New York Yankees need to be proven right about Trent Grisham. The career underachiever broke out in a big way last season, and there are reasons to believe that the breakout was for real. But three straight years of below-average offensive performance and a .138/.219/.207 line in the 2025 postseason are plenty cause for concern.

Coming into spring training, Grisham was one of the Yankees with the most to prove. His acceptance of the qualifying offer shaped New York's offseason, and if he turned back into a pumpkin, the Yankees would have egg on their face.

We don't want to overreact to small spring samples, but through seven games, Grisham is setting the scene for a difficult conversation thanks to his struggles.

Trent Grisham's cold spring start could bring about an uncomfortable conversation for the Yankees

So far, the 29-year-old is hitting just .118/.211/.118 over 19 plate appearances. With that, he's running a 31.6% strikeout rate, which is eerily similar to the 31.3% mark he recorded in last year's playoffs.

It's not time to panic, but this is worth monitoring. If it were just a spring cold spell, that would be one thing. But there are a couple of youngsters who could be turning up the pressure on the veteran.

The combination of Grisham and Cody Bellinger returning to the Bronx made it seem like the most likely outcome for Jasson Dominguez entering the warm-up period would be a demotion to Triple-A. The Yankees have World Series aspirations, making it a foregone conclusion that the pair of veterans would be Aaron Judge's running mates in the outfield, leaving few at-bats for The Martian. Better to give him regular at-bats in Scranton than let him wither away on the bench, so they said.

However, in an equally small sample, the 23-year-old is hitting. He's logged 22 plate appearances with a .300/.318/.550 line and a homer. While his rookie year was uneven and he has issues with his defense and hitting lefties, his 103 wRC+ was better than anything Grisham had put up from 2022 to 2024.

If Dominguez's encouraging start wasn't enough of a threat, then the conversation really gets started with Spencer Jones. The mammoth prospect drew some criticism for his performance during workouts, but since actual game action has begun, he's turned heads.

The comparisons (despite some similarities) between Jones and Shohei Ohtani are annoying, but it doesn't take away from the impressive power display he's put on thus far.

Jones is hitting .308/.438/1.077 with three majestic dingers through seven games. If he keeps this up over the next few weeks, can you really justify keeping the 24-year-old down? He had an incredibly hot summer and an incredibly cold final month to close last season, so he's prone to streaks, but we can only go on the information that we have available.

If the ultimate goal is to win a World Series, then the best players need to be on the Opening Day roster. Grisham's status in that regard isn't in question. The Yankees won't eat $22 million just because of a lackluster spring. But is his job as the starting center fielder starting to rest on shaky ground?

If he continues to struggle and Dominguez finishes the spring with the most impressive performance, he could force the issue. In this scenario, Cody Bellinger would move to center, Dominguez would take over in left, and Grisham would become the fourth outfielder.

Jones continuing to hit moonshots with regularity could be the impetus for a similar situation. In this hypothetical, he'd move into center, where he'd likely be a defensive upgrade, and force Grisham to the bench.

In either scenario, New York could evaluate as it goes. Remember, last season, the intention wasn't to have Grisham as the everyday center fielder, but his hot hitting changed everything. If he begins the season as the fourth outfielder and then proves to be the better option once the games actually count, the Yankees could always pivot. If not, then sending the youngsters to Scranton for a scuffling vet could cause them to drop valuable games in March and April. At the end of the day, the wins and losses count the same, no matter when they come.

Would the Yankees actually have the gall to do something like this? Probably not. Are we at the point where this should be a consideration? Not yet, but the signs are there. If the Yankees are being honest, these thoughts should be rolling around in the back of their minds. And if it continues, a difficult conversation should ensue (even though we doubt it will).