The Yankees Need A Big Offseason To Take The Next Step

Another year, another postseason disappointment for the New York Yankees. Their loss to the Toronto Blue Jays last night eliminated them from the American League Division Series.

Since their last World Series championship in 2009, the Yankees have remained one of the best MLB teams in the regular season, reaching the playoffs 13 times in that 16-year span. In fact, they’ve been a playoff team 27 times in the last 31 years, and they haven’t finished below .500 since 1992. However, they’ve only reached the World Series once since 2010, when they lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers last year.

At 94-68, the Yankees were good, but not good enough, and it’s appropriate that they were eliminated by a division foe who finished ahead of them in the standings and had their number all year. Now they face another Sisyphean offseason in which they must try again to build a ballclub that can push the boulder to the top of the mountain.

Yankees Lineup

The biggest question the Yankees have to answer is in the outfield. Cody Bellinger was second on the team to Aaron Judge with 5.0 WAR (Baseball-Reference version). He hit .272/.334/.480 with 29 home runs and excellent defense at all three outfield positions and occasionally first base. At 30 year old, he’s almost certain to decline his $25 million option for next season and become a free agent.

They also stand to lose center fielder Trent Grisham to free agency. He batted .235/.348/.464 with 34 home runs, which doubled his previous career high. He turns 29 on November 1, so he will be in high demand on the open market.

Their outfield questions don’t end with the players they’re losing. Jasson Domínguez hit .257/.331/.388 in his first full season, and he lost his starting left field job down the stretch. He needs to find a way to tap into more of his raw power since he only connected on 10 home runs in 429 plate appearances. Outside of a three-homer day on May 9 and a two-dinger game on July 4, he only went deep five times.

The only certainty in the outfield is that Judge will be the right fielder. They need to decide whether Domínguez can be trusted as a starter, which will determine whether they need to sign one or two more outfielders.

Either way, bringing Bellinger back should be a top priority. Not only was he one of their best hitters this year, but his defensive versatility was an important asset. They may also need him to play more first base next year since they’re unlikely to re-sign Paul Goldschmidt, and Ben Rice plays catcher sometimes.

The more complicated question is what to do at shortstop. Anthony Volpe completed his third-straight substandard season at the plate, and his .272 on-base percentage was unacceptably low—especially since his defense wavered at times. In the Division Series against Toronto, he went 1-14 with 11 strikeouts, drawing the ire of the fans in attendance as he has for much of the season.

Volpe seems like a good trade candidate for a change of scenery. Even if they keep him, they can’t go into next season with him as the unquestioned starter. An upgrade at shortstop is a necessity.

Yankees Pitching

The starting rotation should be a strength for the Yankees next year. They’ll bring back lefty aces Max Fried and Carlos Rodón, who will be joined be Gerrit Cole sometime in the first half of the 2026 season. Rookie sensation Cam Schlittler will have a full year in the majors, and Will Warren and Luis Gil are in the mix for back-end spots. Clarke Schmidt could return from Tommy John towards the end of the year as well.

The relief corps is a huge concern though. Their 4.37 bullpen ERA ranked 23rd in MLB, and it was dead last among the 12 playoff teams. Only three pitchers threw more than 50 relief innings for them—Tim Hill, Luke Weaver, and Devin Williams—and all three will be free agents.

David Bendar took over the closer job when they acquired him at the trade deadline, and he will be the anchor of the 2026 bullpen. Three inconsistent relievers—Fernando Cruz, Camilo Doval, and Mark Leiter Jr.—will return as well, but the Yankees need more reliable arms to avoid the heartbreaking late-inning losses they suffered too often this year.