Chisholm’s ‘controlled’ chaos changing games for Yankees: 70% effort, 100% impact

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NEW YORK — Jazz Chisholm Jr. has always played like his cleats were on fire. Flashy. Fast. Fearless. But after returning from an oblique strain that sidelined him for nearly a month, the Yankees infielder has found a surprising new gear—one that’s slower, and somehow more effective.

“Just go at 70%,” Chisholm said Friday night after a four-RBI explosion in the Yankees’ 9-6 win over the Boston Red Sox. “Play at 70 percent: offense, defense, running, everything. Stay healthy. You don’t overswing. You don’t swing and miss as much, and you’re a great player at 70%.”

That wasn’t just talk. Since returning to the lineup on Tuesday, Chisholm is 8-for-16 (.500) with two home runs, six RBIs, and three stolen bases. He’s raised his OPS to .797, shaking off a brutal start to 2025 that saw him hit .157 with a .653 OPS as of April 20.

A game-changer despite going slow

Long known for his all-out style, Chisholm has embraced a more measured approach since his rehab stint at Double-A Somerset. There, he worked closely with Yankees assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler, who gave him the brutally honest guidance he now swears by.

“Coach Six told me, ‘At 70%, you’re one of the best out there. At 100%, you might be dog crap,’” Chisholm recalled with a laugh.

It stuck. The usually fiery Chisholm now finds power in restraint, and the results speak for themselves. On Friday, he opened the scoring with a three-run homer in the first inning, then followed it with an RBI single and two stolen bases across five at-bats.

“I was trying to hit a line drive to center field, a base hit,” Chisholm said of his home run. “I wasn’t even trying to hit a home run. It ended up shooting off my bat and getting over the fence. That’s why I was so hyped coming around first base: It hit me—70% is really enough to be a great baseball player.”

Chisholm follows Ricky Bobby’s measured going

His nickname among close friends is “Ricky Bobby,” a nod to the fictional NASCAR driver from Talladega Nights who famously said, “I wanna go fast.” But now Chisholm jokes that his newfound success has made him rethink that mantra.

“It’s super challenging for me because the only thing I knew was how to go fast,” he said. “But you can be electric while being controlled at the same time.”

Yankees captain Aaron Judge, who went 3-for-5 in the same game and raised his average to .397, noticed the change too.

“When you step out there in Yankee Stadium, the adrenaline is going to be flowing,” Judge said about Chisholm. “It’s really about slowing everything down and just taking a nice, easy approach. I was out there at second base, and it looked like he just took a nice, easy swing on a tough curveball.”

From strain to strength

Chisholm’s season seemed on the brink when he went down with a right oblique strain in late April. At the time, he was slashing well below league average and striking out at a high clip. But time away—and a review of his own minor league footage—helped him rediscover what made him successful in the first place.

“I’m feeling like it’s minor league baseball again,” Chisholm said. “That short rehab stint in Double-A took me back to my days when I was hitting .300 and doing the things I’m starting to do now again.”

The switch flipped, and the Yankees are reaping the rewards.

“He’s squaring balls up,” manager Aaron Boone said. “He’s got so much talent and power, and he doesn’t have to go reach for it. That kind of wiry thing he’s got inside him, he doesn’t have to work too hard to generate it. So nice and easy is always good for Jazz.”

The defensive shift—and mental reset

With DJ LeMahieu returning from a calf strain and Oswaldo Cabrera sidelined due to a broken ankle, the Yankees asked Chisholm to slide back to third base—a position he hadn’t played full-time since before his Marlins days. He embraced the move without hesitation.

“I’m comfortable anywhere where there’s dirt,” he said. “Once the ball is on the ground, I’m going to catch it. That’s all I worry about. In the air is a little shaky. It gets a little scary out there.”

Chisholm’s versatility has been key for the Yankees, especially as they navigate roster injuries and aim for October redemption.

Bigger goals in sight

Now hitting .223 and climbing fast, Chisholm’s turnaround isn’t just statistical. It’s symbolic. The Yankees view him as a critical part of their 2025 blueprint—an emotional sparkplug with legitimate All-Star upside.

“In his mind it might be 70%, but I think what everyone in the clubhouse loves and respects about him is that it looks like every night he’s playing with his hair on fire,” said teammate Anthony Volpe.

And Chisholm isn’t shy about the team’s ambitions.

“We not only want to win the division,” he said. “We want to win in every category. We want to be the best team in MLB. We already went [to the World Series] last year and thought we had it. This year, we’re going to make sure we have it.”

At 70%, Jazz Chisholm Jr. might just be the most dangerous version of himself. And if he keeps producing like this, he could very well be the secret weapon the Yankees need to finish what they started last fall.

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