Getty Gleyber Torres smiling
Replacing Gleyber Torres won’t be easy for the New York Yankees. They have internal options to explore, but the two-time All-Star is one of the top second basemen in baseball and will be missed if he departs.
The Yankees might have a better chance to replace Torres if they don’t re-sign Juan Soto. Clearly, keeping Soto in town is the bigger priority than finding a replacement at second base, but there’s a scenario where the Yankees could do both.
Jeff Passan of ESPN believes the Yankees could be in play for Willy Adames, highlighting that he’s willing to move positions. If Adames moved to third and Jazz Chisholm Jr. slid over to second, the Yankees would have an easy replacement for Torres.
“Willy Adames, shortstop: The 29-year-old is coming off a 32-homer season with the Milwaukee Brewers and has hit the second-most home runs in the past six seasons among shortstops, behind only Lindor,” Passan wrote on November 12.
“Though he makes all kinds of sense for the San Francisco Giants, Adames’ willingness to play third base ties him to the Mets and Yankees, too. The Dodgers will be in the mix as well. Adames should cash in, though any reports of contracts already offered are incorrect.”
Adames Predicted to Be Expensive
While it’s impossible to count out the New York Yankees when it comes to spending, it’s tough to imagine a scenario in which they could sign Soto to a $600-plus million deal and Adames to a long-term contract.
Anything is possible, and the two have been linked recently, so it’s certainly something that could happen.
Adames is expected to be paid like the top shortstop in Major League Baseball this winter. After the best season of his career and showing the willingness to move positions, he looks all but guaranteed to get paid handsomely.
Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report expects that to be the case, predicting that Adames will land a seven-year, $180 million deal.
“Willy Adames is reaching free agency at an interesting juncture of his career. He is coming off of the best offensive season of his career, as he homered 32 times and drove in 112 runs for the Brewers. That makes him an elite run producer at any position, let alone shortstop.
“However, Adames’ defensive metrics fell off a cliff this past season, as he posted minus-16 defensive runs saved and zero outs above average,” Kelly wrote on November 12. “That’s hard to square because he finished 2023 with eight DRS and 16 OAA. Was there that dramatic of a drop-off in one year?”
Yankees Lineup With Soto and Adames
In the scenario that the New York Yankees could sign Soto and Adames to big deals, they’d have the best lineup in Major League Baseball.
Despite how expensive it may be, the Yankees are in a position to win right now, especially if Soto were to return. If they plan to spend $60 million on one player, they can’t ignore the rest of the lineup.
The Yankees’ offense went cold at times during the campaign, but a lineup featuring Adames, Soto, Aaron Judge, and others would be a nightmare for opposing pitchers.
His price is his price, but Adames would be an excellent addition to replace Torres with.
Jon Conahan covers the NBA and NFL for Heavy.com. Since 2019, his sports coverage has appeared at Sports Illustrated, oddschecker, ClutchPoints and Sportskeeda. More about Jon Conahan
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