Yankees quietly release offseason signing they thought would help at first base

Before the New York Yankees reunited with Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt this past winter, they hedged their bets and brought in some veteran depth by signing long-time Oakland Athletics first baseman and outfielder Seth Brown to a minor league deal. Six months later, the Brown era in the Bronx is over before it ever began as the Yankees announced they've released the 33-year-old veteran.

Brown was never truly a contender to be an alternative to Bellinger, and he wasn't even really a threat to Goldschmidt at first, as he's a lefty batter. Goldschmidt's turn-back-the-clock season has made him a vital piece of the 2026 roster, unable to be unseated by any fringe-major leaguer, regardless of handedness.

The veteran last played in the majors in 2025, logging 38 games and hitting just .185/.303/.262 with one homer and a 30.3% strikeout rate. This year at Scranton, he slashed .235/.327/.426 with nine dingers in 53 games. The offensive performance was good for a slightly below average wRC+ of 97, and he struck out at an egregious 33.2% rate.

New York's decisions to call up younger outfielders Spencer Jones and Jasson Dominguez prove that Brown was never going to get a shot unless there was some sort of catastrophic injury situation. By releasing him, they've set him up to attempt to latch on somewhere else where he has a better opportunity to continue his big league career.

Yankees still have plenty of organizational depth with more upside after releasing Seth Brown

Brown is no big loss as the Yankees have a group of similar players with potentially greater upside down in Scranton. The position player most likely to get the call, should there be any more injuries, would be Oswaldo Cabrera. He's actually on the 40-man roster, which gives him a huge leg up, and can also play all over the field, proving to be a more versatile option than a guy like Brown, who had little defensive value as a poor outfielder and primary first baseman at this point in his career.

Beyond that, if the Yankees had a need at the cold corner, two key depth options stand out. One such player is Ernesto Martinez Jr., a player who Milwaukee Brewers fans were unhappy to lose to the Yankees over the offseason.

At 27 years old, Martinez Jr. is significantly younger than Brown and out-produced him in Triple-A with a .244/.306/.487 line with 12 long balls in 55 games. Martinez Jr. can also moonlight in the outfield corners and swings the bat from the left side, making him essentially a higher-upside version of Brown.

Perhaps even more interesting, at least given the back story, is another 27-year-old. Tyler Hardman was a fifth-round pick of the Yankees back in 2021 out of the University of Oklahoma, and had worked his way into New York's top-30 prospects, ranking No. 20 back in 2023.

Injuries, including undergoing Tommy John surgery in October of 2023, held him back and stagnated his development. This year, he became the Somerset Patriots' all-time hits leader, in part because of all the time he's spent at Double-A.

However, he had a truly magical season in the New Jersey suburbs this year, hitting .300/.371/.613 with 13 homers over 42 games before finally earning the long-awaited promotion to Scranton. He's played 21 Triple-A games and has hit .239/.325/.451 with three homers since his promotion. He's a right-handed bat, and while he has only played one game in left field in his career, he has extensive experience at first and third, as well as being able to play second in a pinch.

So Brown is no big loss. He was a break glass in case of emergency option, and the Yankees have plenty of other guys who can fill that role, all while being a bit more exciting.

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