NEW YORK — The Yankees’ infield has been a season-long drag on the lineup rather than a single broken position. Anthony Volpe is hitting .247 with one home run and 15 RBIs, production that has kept his job secure on defense and nowhere else.
Ryan McMahon has struggled through his own difficult year at third base, a glove-first veteran whose bat has not carried its share. He arrived from Colorado as a defensive upgrade and has spent 2026 trying to hit his way back to league average.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. has been the exception and the complication at second base. He has provided the power the group otherwise lacks, and he can become a free agent after the season.
Depth is the other pressure point. Scouts surveying the roster this month described Volpe as a player the club increasingly views as a bench piece, with top prospect George Lombard Jr. nearing his major league debut.
That leaves the Yankees short of everyday certainty at three of four infield spots, either now or by November, which is the backdrop for any deadline conversation about a versatile infielder.
A seller with a ringing phone
Colorado owns the worst record in the majors and has begun taking calls. Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic reported Wednesday that the Rockies are hearing from teams on several players, Willi Castro among them.
Rockies utility man has emerged as a low-cost option who fits what the Yankees need ahead of the Aug. 3 deadline, a second Colorado target for a club already linked to catcher Hunter Goodman. He covers four infield positions, carries a modest price and answers a roster question that runs into next season.
The 29-year-old switch-hitter has spent most of this season in the infield, logging 61 games at second base, 26 at third, 22 at shortstop and 10 at first. He has also appeared in center and left field.
His contract is part of the appeal. Castro is under club control for 2027 at $7.3 million, which for a player who can cover four infield spots is closer to a bargain than a burden.
A deal for him would not require the kind of package the Yankees would have to assemble for a front-line catcher or a late-inning arm, leaving Brian Cashman room to spend elsewhere.
How Castro fits the Yankees bill
The Yankees have been specific about wanting outfield help, and Castro brings that flexibility along with everything he offers on the dirt.
ESPN’s Jorge Castillo reported that a “right-handed hitting outfielder” sits on the Yankees’ wish list ahead of the deadline.
Castro is a switch-hitter rather than a strict right-handed bat, which lets the Yankees deploy him against either hand. He has played all three outfield spots in his career, including 88 games in right field, and has appeared in center and left this season.
The comparison that matters is with the incumbent. Jasson Dominguez is hitting .232 with five home runs, 12 RBIs and a .663 OPS, and has handled right field in 30 games this season, giving the Yankees reason to want another option there.
Dominguez grades out reasonably in the field, with a .983 fielding percentage against a league average of .986 and two defensive runs saved above average. The gap is at the plate rather than in the glove.
Castro would not bring corner-outfield power, and nobody is arguing he would. What he offers the Yankees is the ability to fill whichever hole opens on a given night, which is precisely the profile a club with four needs tends to value.
What the infield numbers say
Castro’s defensive record is uneven by position, which shapes where he would actually help. He has been solid at second base with a .986 fielding percentage, two errors in 145 chances and one defensive run saved above average.
Third base has been a strength, where his .977 mark sits well above the .965 league average with one error in 44 chances. At first base he has been flawless, with no errors in 38 chances.
Shortstop is the exception and the caution. Castro has a .927 fielding percentage there against a .971 league average, with four errors in 55 chances and three defensive runs below average.
That makes him no upgrade on Volpe, whose .988 fielding percentage remains the strongest part of his game. Castro’s value would come at the other infield spots.
The roster math beyond this season
Third base is where the case sharpens. Castro’s .977 fielding percentage there would give Aaron Boone a genuine alternative to McMahon rather than a bench body.
Second base carries the longer-term question, because the Yankees have no obvious internal answer if Chisholm departs in free agency.
Castro’s 2027 club control would cover that gap at a modest price, which is the part of this that extends past October. He would be insurance for a decision the Yankees have not yet had to make.
Colorado is listening, the deadline is Aug. 3, and Castro fits the bill for a roster that needs answers in more than one place at once.
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