{"id":95274,"date":"2025-08-31T08:30:06","date_gmt":"2025-08-31T08:30:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=95274"},"modified":"2025-08-31T08:30:06","modified_gmt":"2025-08-31T08:30:06","slug":"yankees-world-series-starter-doesnt-even-have-a-job-in-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=95274","title":{"rendered":"Yankees World Series starter doesn\u2019t even have a job in 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The New York Yankees reached the World Series last season with Alex Verdugo in left field, but what a difference a year makes.<\/p>\n<p>Now, Verdugo doesn\u2019t even have a job in Major League Baseball, while Trent Grisham is having a breakout campaign.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a remarkable reminder of baseball\u2019s unpredictability \u2014 how one career can collapse while another explodes in the span of months.<\/p>\n<p>Verdugo, once viewed as a reliable everyday outfielder, has seen his value plummet after another season of steep regression.<\/p>\n<h2>Verdugo\u2019s sharp decline<\/h2>\n<p>In 2024, Verdugo played 149 games for the Yankees, hitting .233\/.291\/.356 with 13 home runs and 61 RBIs.<\/p>\n<p>That line resulted in an 84 wRC+, making him 16 percent worse than the average major league hitter overall.<\/p>\n<p>It marked his third consecutive season of regression, raising concerns about whether his peak years were already behind him.<\/p>\n<p>The Yankees still trotted him out in October, but his impact was minimal during their postseason run.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/empiresportsmedia.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=1220,height=813,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/MLB-ALDS-Kansas-City-Royals-at-New-York-Yankees-24416724.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 858px) 100vw, 858px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/empiresportsmedia.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=428,height=285,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/MLB-ALDS-Kansas-City-Royals-at-New-York-Yankees-24416724-scaled.jpg 430w, https:\/\/empiresportsmedia.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=858,height=572,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/MLB-ALDS-Kansas-City-Royals-at-New-York-Yankees-24416724-scaled.jpg 858w\" alt=\"Yankees World Series starter doesn\u2019t even have a job in 2025\" \/><figcaption>Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>A failed stint in Atlanta<\/h2>\n<p>This year, Verdugo tried to reset his career with the Atlanta Braves but found even more struggles awaiting him.<\/p>\n<p>Across 56 games, he hit .239\/.296\/.289, failed to hit a home run, and collected only 12 RBIs total.<\/p>\n<p>His wRC+ dropped to 66, indicating he was 34 percent worse than the league average offensive player.<\/p>\n<p>Even his defense, once considered a reliable strength, crumbled, leaving little reason for Atlanta to keep him rostered.<\/p>\n<h2>Grisham\u2019s breakout season<\/h2>\n<p>Meanwhile, Trent Grisham, a player the Yankees barely tapped into last season, is enjoying a career year in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>The 28-year-old outfielder is slashing .248\/.354\/.482 with 28 home runs, an .836 OPS, and a 134 wRC+.<\/p>\n<p>That production places him 34 percent above the league average \u2014 a massive leap into legitimate All-Star caliber territory.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s the type of season that completely changes how a player is viewed heading into free agency this winter.<\/p>\n<h2>A missed opportunity for New York<\/h2>\n<p>Looking back, it\u2019s wild to think the Yankees had Grisham sitting on the bench while Verdugo received postseason starts.<\/p>\n<p>To be fair, nobody predicted Grisham\u2019s 2025 explosion, but his tools always suggested untapped upside if given consistent chances.<\/p>\n<p>Verdugo, on the other hand, looked like a player running out of steam, yet continued getting opportunities over his teammate.<\/p>\n<p>That decision, in hindsight, feels like the Yankees betting on familiarity rather than trusting in potential breakout production.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/empiresportsmedia.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=1250,height=833,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/MLB-Baltimore-Orioles-at-New-York-Yankees-trent-grisham-26504131.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 858px) 100vw, 858px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/empiresportsmedia.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=428,height=285,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/MLB-Baltimore-Orioles-at-New-York-Yankees-trent-grisham-26504131-scaled.jpg 430w, https:\/\/empiresportsmedia.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/width=858,height=572,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/MLB-Baltimore-Orioles-at-New-York-Yankees-trent-grisham-26504131-scaled.jpg 858w\" alt=\"Yankees World Series starter doesn\u2019t even have a job in 2025\" \/><figcaption>Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Baseball\u2019s unforgiving nature<\/h2>\n<p>Baseball careers often shift dramatically in short time spans, and the Verdugo-Grisham contrast embodies that unforgiving volatility.<\/p>\n<p>One player now sits unemployed after his bat and glove betrayed him, while the other is set for a payday.<\/p>\n<p>The Yankees witnessed both arcs unfold in real time, gaining a new star while watching another flame out entirely.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, it shows how quickly fortunes can flip in this sport \u2014 and how timing changes everything.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former Yankees outfielder Alex Verdugo is out of MLB while Trent Grisham thrives, showing how quickly baseball fortunes can change.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":95275,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-95274","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Yankees World Series starter doesn\u2019t even have a job in 2025 - News 365<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=95274\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta 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