Yankees' least impactful player of 2025 declines offer, signs with Tigers instead

The New York Yankees really, truly wanted to push the boundaries of running it back this offseason, but outfielder Austin Slater just would not let them get the final piece of the puzzle in place.

Late last week, as the Yankees weighed a fleet of right-handed bench options, Brian Cashman found a middle ground with Paul Goldschmidt, the sturdiest of the candidates (and the one with the highest 2025 OPS against southpaws by far). Instead of bending over backwards to nab an outfielder or a right-handed backup catcher, the Yankees opted for pedigree, signing Goldschmidt even though it meant some resounding oddness throughout the rest of the roster.

Would the Yankees still bring in an outfielder like Randal Grichuk or Tommy Pham? Would they ditch JC Escarra? Would they relegate Jasson Domínguez to Triple-A before camp even opened? The possibilities were endless — and those possibilities definitely included Slater, who they reportedly made a $1 million offer to earlier in the offseason.

On Tuesday, we got another sliver of the answer, as Slater followed Justin Verlander to Detroit instead. This choice came shortly after Joel Sherman insinuated that any potential Yankees additions before Opening Day — outfield, catcher, bullpen — would likelier come from a trade than the free agent market.

Yankees lose free agent outfielder Austin Slater to Detroit Tigers

Slater, traded from Chicago to New York for pitching prospect Gage Ziehl (now a Red Sox) last summer, was a novel concept. The Yankees needed to remake their bench on the fly. They needed platoon adults with a specific set of skills. Amed Rosario qualified. So did Slater, who carries a career .787 OPS against left-handed pitching.

Unfortunately, Rosario slammed into a wall shortly after his arrival, and was relegated mostly to dugout cheerleader status. Slater? His OPS against lefties in 2024 was far lower (.541!) and he didn't exactly light the world on fire in 2025, either (.726). He, too, was injured almost comically quickly after arriving in New York. He started a home game against Tampa Bay, came in for defense once in Miami, then hurt his hamstring in his third appearance in Texas. Ultimately, it was a 14-game stint in the Bronx for Slater, and he started just six of them. Magic.

Slater will now be called upon to reinforce one of the most strangely active teams of the fallow period of the offseason, overshadowed by the arrivals of Verlander and Framber Valdez. That's probably a better fit for him anyway, given that his return might've been the straw that officially broke the Yankees' running-it-back camel's back.