An assessment of Gleyber Torres‘ tenure with the Yankees paints a nuanced portrait. Across seven seasons, Torres has logged 888 starts, 601 of them at second base. Yet, defensive issues have surfaced, with Torres leading the league in errors last season with 18, following 15 the year before. Offensively, despite a boost after taking over the leadoff spot, his production was moderate, reflected by a 101 OPS+ and 104 wRC+.
Addressing potential changes at second base, Yankees GM Brian Cashman noted the “current vacancy” created by Torres’ free agency and outlined strategic paths to fill it. He pointed to several options, including internal adjustments like moving Jazz Chisholm Jr. back to second base. Chisholm had transitioned to the Yankees’ third base midseason after being acquired at the trade deadline.
Cashman also mentioned the potential promotion of infield prospect Caleb Durbin and left open the possibility of exploring external free agents, with or without Torres as an option, as well as trade scenarios. He stressed the importance of evaluating these options with an eye toward overall roster balance.
“What are our internal options? Is that moving Jazz [Chisholm Jr.] over to second if you don’t re-sign Gleyber?” he said. “Do you move him over to second? Do you look at Caleb Durbin, your internal candidate coming up? Is there external candidates that you run into that you can import as a free agent that might not be Gleyber if it’s not Gleyber? Maybe you bring Gleyber back? Is there a trade candidate? Our job is to evaluate all of it and then how it settles in with the rest of the roster. Those are things that we will be doing.”
On the topic of Chisholm’s positional flexibility, particularly his experience in center field, where he made 192 starts with the Marlins over the past two seasons, Cashman stated that Yankees evaluators hadn’t deeply considered this possibility. While acknowledging Chisholm’s capability in the outfield, Cashman expressed a preference for utilizing him in the infield.
Yankees ready to dump Torres
When discussing Gleyber Torres, Yankees GM Brian Cashman offered a balanced view, highlighting Torres’ significant contributions while avoiding detailed commentary on how his defensive issues might impact re-signing considerations.
Cashman noted that Torres, now a free agent, would likely draw interest from several teams in need of middle infielders, including potentially the Yankees. He acknowledged Torres’ critical offensive impact during the latter part of the season but was careful not to disclose specific plans. Instead, Cashman provided an overview of strategic options for the organization.
“He’ll have a lot of conversations with a lot of teams that have a need in that area and that also might include us, you know, who knows,” Cashman said. “But I appreciate his efforts while he was here and he was mashing down the stretch like we needed him to be. But again, everybody has their strengths and weaknesses, but I’m not gonna dissect what’s best moving forward. We’re just obviously gonna make the best decisions we can from what’s available from within or outside. We can import a third baseman and move Jazz over, we can promote from within with a guy like Caleb Durbin, for instance, who is crushing it in the Arizona Fall League. We can run into some trade opportunities or free agents. Just not too sure what we’re gonna do just yet. But I want to thank Gleyer for the time while he was here without closing any doors, either on a reunion.”
According to Cashman, these options range from shifting Jazz Chisholm Jr. to second base and seeking a new third baseman to promoting in-house talent like Caleb Durbin or exploring trade and free agent markets. While leaving the door open for Torres’ possible return, Cashman expressed appreciation for his time with the team.
Regarding internal prospects, Cashman highlighted Durbin, who joined the Yankees from the Braves in December 2022. The 24-year-old showcased promising development at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, appearing in 82 games and posting strong numbers: 23 doubles, 10 home runs, 60 RBIs, and a .287/.396/.471 slash line, contributing to a .867 OPS.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Jazz will be an infielder, the only question is where. You might see Jazz in the OF in a in game position switch, or simply to give another guy a day off as he might be looked upon as the 4th OF, but that’s it. Jazz is an infielder, and I have a feeling not many discussions have happened to extend Torres. This is why you have prospects. You don’t pay everyone. The Astros let Correa walk and installed their own rookie, Penà, and didn’t miss a beat overall.