Yankees-Paul Goldschmidt rumors ignite with a single tweet after Cody Bellinger trade

When Bob Nightengale stated with relative certainty on Monday evening, in the wake of the Yankees trading for Cody Bellinger, that they were also about to sign one of Christian Walker, Pete Alonso, Carlos Santana, or Paul Goldschmidt, we were skeptical.

After all, Anthony Santander was out here following team accounts on Instagram. We'd also already been down this road with Walker once, and things fizzled out (due to draft pick compensation, or classic cold feet). Alonso and Walker were the only names that had been credibly connected to the Yankees, at the time. Was Brian Cashman really about to splurge again? If so, were we certain it would be on a first baseman?

Then came ... the GIF.

Barstool Sports' Eric Hubbs isn't someone who carries himself as a newsbreaker, but after a seemingly endless wait, he kicked off what turned out to be Bellinger Day by posting a GIF of Belli taking Carlos Rodón deep. That would qualify as a successful cryptic tweet.

Around 8:30 PM, he went ahead and tried to go 2-for-2, posting a simple Goldschmidt GIF representing the 2022 MVP looking stoic. The fans, split on Goldy, went nuts.

Yankees Rumors: New York zeroing in on Paul Goldschmidt for first base?

Now, on the morning after, we're still waiting for finality. But a few things are clear: Goldschmidt should be available on a one-year deal. The fewer long-term commitments, the more impact players, the better. Goldschmidt raked against left-handers all year in 2024, posting an .839 OPS. He raked against everybody in the second half, getting that OPS up to .799 overall. He sports similar underlying metrics to the 34-year-old Walker, but he won't require quite as lengthy a commitment.

We see why someone might be against it, but there are far worse one-year bets you can make, especially with second base and the bullpen still in need of filling. Odds are, Goldschmidt will take a lower annual salary than most options AND he'll take it for only one season. Either he'll be the greatest stroke of luck to ever happen to the Yankees, a perfect veteran leader for a ballclub that's been lacking that recently, or he'll be 2008 Pudge Rodriguez. No in between.

Regardless, no deal has crossed the finish line yet. All we have is a GIF and plenty of buzz. But one thing we do know for sure? 13-year-olds on Twitter would've lost their MINDS about adding Wade Boggs and Tim Raines before the dynasty. It's possible these types of players will help, actually.