Yankees lineup for playoff: Possible roster predictions with breakdown

BOSTON — With injured stars set to return and depth holding an amazing talent, there is a lot of talk over the Yankees lineup for playoffs. Projections and predictions are common over who plays in which position. An analysis allows a better look at the potential Yankees lineup that can assure the team brass of a winning result.

Gerrit Cole got a nine-figure deal from the Yankees to be their ace pitcher. He’s almost certain to start Game 1 of the playoffs for them. No Yankees lineup will look credible without him

At the trade deadline, the Yankees’ general manager, Brian Cashman, sent three promising pitchers to Oakland in exchange for Frankie Montas, who is likely to be their No. 2 in the playoffs. So, he is a must.

Luis Severino is expected to come off the injured list next week and make at least three starts before the end of the regular season. He may remain on the bench but help the Yankees step up when needed.

Nestor Cortes gave up just one run over five innings in a 5-3 win over the Red Sox on Wednesday and could be a good fit for the playoff  Yankees lineup. 

“He’s obviously going to play a huge role for us moving forward down the stretch here,” assured manager Aaron Boone when asked about Cortes at the Fenway Park.

At this point, Cortes, who has done well in his first All-Star season, seems like a sure thing to be at least the Yankees’ third playoff starter. He’s 10-4 and has the best ERA on the team at 2.70. His two weeks on the injured list may have given him the break he needed in his first full season as a big league starter.

But what about the other players on the playoff team? Here’s our Yankees lineup prediction, with reasons:

Yankees Lineup

1. DJ LeMahieu, 2B

2. Aaron Judge, RF

3. Anthony Rizzo, 1B

4. Giancarlo Stanton, LF

5. Gleyber Torres, DH

6. Josh Donaldson, 3B

7. Harrison Bader, CF

8. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, SS

9. Jose Trevino, C

Why:  The Yankees are likely to win the American League East for the first time since 2019 because they have a six-game lead with 19 games left. That would mean the Yankees would skip the Wild Card series and go straight to the Division Series, which doesn’t start until October 11. That would give Stanton almost a whole month to get used to the outfield again before getting into the Yankees lineup.

The Yankees haven’t said anything about Stanton being a full-time DH for the rest of the season. Since Stanton’s plan when he was coming back from Achilles tendinitis was to play the outfield, we can assume that’s still the plan. Stanton has said more than once that putting him in the outfield makes the Yankees’ lineup more interesting and helps him hit better. He’s only played left field in four games this season, but he’s done it 60 times in his career and hasn’t done too badly.

Plus, if you’re not going to use Bader, why trade for him? LeMahieu and Donaldson are better defenders than Torres in the infield, but Torres’ bat still needs to be there. The Yankees can’t be happy about having eight right-handed hitters, but that’s what they have. Matt Carpenter and Andrew Benintendi could still come back, but don’t get nurture high hopes.

Yankees Lineup: Bench

1. Marwin Gonzalez, Utl

2. Tim Locastro, OF

3. Oswaldo Cabrera, Utl

4. Kyle Higashioka, C

Why: The Yankees’ best option for a pinch-runner in the late innings is Locastro. Cabrera has shown that he is not afraid of anything, but the Yankees would probably like a better bench bat. Gonzalez covers almost all of the Yankees’ defense for them. Aaron Hicks is the only one left out.

Yankees Lineup Rotation

Game 1: Gerrit Cole

Game 2: Nestor Cortes

Game 3: Frankie Montas

Game 4: Luis Severino

Why: Depending on the opponent, you could switch Montas and Cortes, but Cortes seems to have earned the higher rotation spot. If Severino doesn’t look good after coming off the disabled list, Taillon could get a chance on the Yankees lineup.

The Bullpen

1. Closer: Clay Holmes, RHP

2. Wandy Peralta, LHP

3. Clarke Schmidt, RHP

4. Jonathan Loaisiga, RHP

5. Lou Trivino, RHP

6. Scott Effross, RHP

7. Lucas Luetge, LHP

8. Ron Marinaccio, RHP

9. Jameson Taillon, RHP

Why: Take note that Aroldis Chapman, Zack Britton, and Miguel Castro are not there. Chapman is due to come back from the IL on Friday, but Boone doesn’t trust him at all. Still, it’s not clear if Britton and Castro will be healthy enough and play enough innings to be ready for the playoffs. It looks like Effross will be off the disabled list next week. He has pitched well all season. Schmidt could replace Mike King in the middle innings when there are a lot of right-handed batters. Taillon stays around as a backup pitcher in case one of their starters gets hurt.

Do you agree with Yankees lineup forecast? Who would you like to add?