Yankees' newest addition vs. Caleb Durbin actually paints an interesting picture

The New York Yankees have forcefully responded to the Boston Red Sox's life-altering trade for Caleb Durbin with a monster acquisition of their own. While all of those statements were made with my tongue firmly implanted in my cheek, it's pretty clear the Yankees see some of what they once coveted in Durbin in their newest addition, Max Schuemann of the Athletics.

Notably, the Yankees also seem to view both players as contributors, not starters. Their assessment of Durbin might've been incorrect, but they can still reap the rewards if Schuemann comes out of the lab the way they suspect him to.

Schuemann is a jack of all trades, master of none, with options that can be used to manipulate his role on the Yankees' roster. If nothing changes on the bench prior to Opening Day, two of Schuemann, Jasson Domínguez, and Oswaldo Cabrera will begin the year either in Triple-A or in someone else's system.

You may not see Schuemann in San Francisco for the opener, but you probably will see him cover a number of different positions defensively. You probably won't see him strike out. Can the Yankees harness a light-hitting, soft-contact anomaly who makes excellent swing decisions to rival Boston's Durbin addition? Or will the former A's utility man get lost to history instead?

Red Sox's Caleb Durbin has a similar profile to Yankees' newest addition Max Schuemann

There's one core difference, though: look at that range on Schuemann.

Alex Cora made it very clear at Boston's first spring training press conference of the year that, once he has his third baseman and second baseman sorted out, he'd like to be rigid with it. The team also balked at several Marcelo Mayer trades earlier in the winter, and endorsed the youngster covering third. No reason to test Durbin's range; just install him at second, hope Wilyer Abreu and Roman Anthony provide the power boost Boston lacked last year, and go to work hosing groundballs and wreaking havoc on the base paths.

The Yankees could use more offensive diversity, too, and while Schuemann may never be able to replicate exactly what they lost in Durbin, he's more akin to the scrappy Bostonian than you might think — and he can play an excellent, rangy left field, too.

Yes, this is 100% sardonic coping. Boston got better, and they did so by acquiring a player the Yankees gave away for a closer who hated being here and tanked the season. But at least the Yankees followed up that surprising trade by acquiring a player who excels at some things they haven't prized in recent years, and probably should've. Schuemann is a winning player in the right circumstances, and maybe they'll get him to level up one notch, too.