A former New York Yankees star who left in free agency this offseason did not take kindly to a shocking revelation by general manager Brian Cashman.
During a conversation on the YES Network’s “Hot Stove”, Cashman raised eyebrows when he revealed the original plan upon making the deadline trade for Jazz Chisholm Jr. was for Chisholm to play second base, but instead he went to third because Gleyber Torres refused to move from second.
While it’s not major news that Torres didn’t want to switch from his position given he stated that publicly at the time of the deal, Cashman bringing it up again sparked a reaction from Torres on his social media account, telling the Yankees executive to “turn the page” in a now deleted post.
New York has certainly turned the page from Torres, as did the two-time All-Star this winter when he signed a one-year contract with the Detroit Tigers.
Ironically, and perhaps not surprisingly, Torres will be playing second base after the Tigers shifted some things around within their own infield to fit him in.
He has historically struggled on the defensive side of the ball even while playing his preferred position, grading out as statistically the worst defensive second baseman in the sport this past season.
It was also a rough year for Torres at the plate. He was benched at the beginning of August before a late-season resurgence salvaged a ton of his value and allowed him to land the $15 million deal from Detroit.
In the first two years of his career in 2018-2019, Torres looked like a potential perennial All-Star and cornerstone of the franchise for the next decade-plus.
With an .871 OPS, .278 average, and 38 home runs in his second MLB season, he had officially arrived.
After a couple of down years, Torres bounced back in 2023, but his OPS dipped down to a .709 with just 15 home runs in 2024 on top of the defensive woes.
It became clear the Yankees were not looking to bring him back as a free agent, and instead he ended up with a young, ascending Tigers team who could push to contend in the American League.
Given he’s on a one-year prove it type deal, Torres will be more motivated than ever to have a great season and show New York they made a mistake by moving on.
Since it now looks clear how rough things may have been behind the scenes between Torres and the team. however, perhaps a change of scenery was in the best interest of both sides.