Yankees should let Randy Arozarena go to Red Sox instead of igniting bidding war

Years ago, it felt as if every top free agent was bound to find himself in a bidding war between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. These days, the confrontations have become less frequent, but there's always been some extra motivation to win the tug-of-war battle, not only for what the player can bring to the pinstripes, but also for the benefit of not having to face off against him with Boston.

As the regular season was coming to a close, the Red Sox were named by Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times as a prime fit for Mariners outfielder Randy Arozarena, who is now a free agent. Now that we're closer to the start of free agency, Divish has an updated take. He still sees Boston as a fit, but he believes that Arozarena's preference is to land with an East Coast contender, and he has added New York to the list of possible destinations.

We like Arozarena, who has a streak of six straight 20-20 seasons and is familiar with the AL East battles from his days with the Tampa Bay Rays. In fact, we thought he would've been a nice addition for the Yankees at the trade deadline as Seattle fell out of the playoff race.

However, now, the Yankees are better off letting him go to Boston. There are a few reasons why.

The Yankees shouldn't engage in a bidding war with the Red Sox for Randy Arozarena

First, there's the question of roster fit. You can argue that New York needs to add to its outfield. Despite freakish physical tools, Spencer Jones was not great defensively in center field this year. On top of that, Aaron Judge is going to need more DH days in 2027 than ever before, and Heliot Ramos shouldn't be a shoo-in to stay with the team.

So the need in the outfield is clear, but the problem is that Arozarena is neither a center fielder nor a right fielder. He hasn't played any right field since 2022, and with 32nd-percentile arm strength, he'd be a poor fit there now. The 31-year-old is exclusively a left fielder, and a poor one at that. In 2026, he posted -2 defensive runs saved, -5 outs above average, and a -7 fielding run value.

If you sign Arozarena, you're taking Cody Bellinger, a 2026 Gold Glove finalist, whose 21 defensive runs saved led all MLB left fielders, and moving him to center field, where his defense is just average at best. Bellinger is only getting older, so his defense in center will decline, and his body will need to be protected.

That essentially ensures that two-thirds of the outfield will be subpar defensively, and after the defensive debacle in the ALDS, it might not be wise to take what was a strength of the team (defense in left field) and weaken it.

Offensively, Arozarena hit .281/.381/.484 this season, making it appear as if he's a great fit offensively for a team that needs more contact prowess and right-handed bats in its lineup. The problem is that it's a career-best slash line, which is always something of a red flag for an impending free agent. The red on that flag gets redder when you realize how far above his previous two seasons that performance was.

In 2024, Arozarena hit .219/.332/.388, and in 2025, he posted a .238/.334/.426 line. The plus-contact skill starts to look a bit shakier with that context thrown in. Entering his age-32 season, is he more likely to continue to overperform or regress to the norm?

It might be one thing if Arozarena was the clear top option on the market, but he's not. There's also Seiya Suzuki, who fits the Yankees much better. Suzuki is an actual right fielder, and a good one at that who is also up for a Gold Glove this year. He's also arguably a better hitter, too. Suzuki and Arozarena are roughly the same age and will cost about the same amount of money. Let the Red Sox have Arozarena, and go get Suzuki because the fit is just better.

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