FanGraphs | Matt Martell: Aaron Judge had one of the finest seasons by any hitter in baseball history, and followed it up with one of the finest postseason performances in baseball history. For the eighth time in his career, there wasn’t enough around Judge to get the Yankees to their ultimate goal, despite Aaron Boone’s proclamation this was the best team he had managed. Martell in particular focuses on the failures of Anthony Volpe, and what the future might look like for the Yankees at shortstop. Volpe striking out in three-quarters of his ALDS plate appearances played a major role in the bottom of the lineup being totally impotent against the Blue Jays, and he’s no longer fresh to the league.
MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: Everyone has their autopsies ready, with Hoch pondering the status of Aaron Judge’s right elbow and Cody Bellinger’s opt-out. Right now there are major question marks around 2/3 of the team’s starting outfield, a combined 82 home runs and 15.0 (!) fWAR. Coming up with a plan to fill that chasm is the first task of the Yankee offseason, and perhaps the key to fielding a better team in 2026.
The Athletic | Chris Kirschner ($): Kirschner turns his attention to the one real gem available in free agency, Kyle Tucker. Tucker won’t land the kind of deal that Juan Soto did last year, but if the Yankees want to take the savings they’ll get from jettisoning Paul Goldschmidt, as well as Aaron Hicks’ and Marcus Stroman’s dead money, Tucker could add a very deep skillset to the 2026 roster.
MLB Trade Rumors | Steve Adams: We close with the loss of a man who could have an argument for being Mr. Baseball. Sandy Alomar Sr. passed away over the weekend at the age of 81. Sandy saw two children make the majors, after his own 15 seasons in the bigs, with parts of three coming with the Yankees (1974-76, the last of which saw the Yankees win their first pennant in 12 years). He then spent another 16 years as a coach across a trio of MLB clubs, and continued to be a titan in Latin baseball development. Rest in peace, Sandy.
