Getty Yankees GM Brian Cashman has to fix his infield before the 2025 season. Could third baseman Alex Bregman be part of the solution?
The New York Yankees are in the thick of MLB’s 2024 postseason chase. They’re also keeping pace with the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East. The Bronx Bombers are fully focused on this season, but how could the 2025 roster take shape this winter? Could general manager Brian Cashman’s plans include Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman?
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal floated it as a possibility while discussing Bregman and fellow third baseman Matt Chapman in an August 13 article.
“The market for third basemen should be interesting. Besides the Astros and Giants, the teams with obvious needs include the Mariners, Arizona Diamondbacks and New York Yankees, presuming they move Jazz Chisholm Jr. to second as a replacement for Gleyber Torres,” he said. “The Mets also could be a possibility, if they don’t view Mark Vientos as a long-term answer.”
Bregman is in the final season of a five-year, $100 million extension he signed with the Astros. The Scott Boras client is likely looking for a significant payday ahead of his age-31 campaign in 2025. Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer predicted the third baseman would land a $210 million contract in free agency.
Rymer also predicted that the two-time World Series champion would re-sign with Houston. However, that will depend on how his market develops and what other teams are willing to pay him.
How Alex Bregman Would Fit Into the Yankees’ Everyday Lineup
As Rosenthal mentioned, fitting Bregman into the Yankees’ infield would include shifting around if Gleyber Torres heads elsewhere in free agency. Chisholm could shift to second base to open a spot for Bregman at the hot corner. Bringing the 2019 Silver Slugger Award winner to the Bronx might only be a serious possibility if the Yankees can’t retain outfielder Juan Soto.
But still, this isn’t the first time Bregman has been mentioned as a potential solution at the hot corner in the Bronx. Joel Sherman of the New York Post brought up the Yankees and Mets in a March 2 report.
“I suspect the Mets and Yankees will be renewing financial fisticuffs more frequently,” he said. “And one (potential bidding war) that I think could be particularly interesting involves Alex Bregman.”
The Yankees have gotten 1.9 fWAR from their third basemen entering August 13 games, per FanGraphs. That has them in a three-way tie for 15th in baseball, but it’s a deceiving number. Jazz Chisholm Jr. has played 13 games at third base since getting acquired by the Yankees. His performance has been worth 1.1 fWAR. Oswaldo Cabrera (0.4), Jon Berti (0.2), DJ LeMahieu (0.1) and Jahmai Jones (0.1) have combined for 0.8 fWAR in 115 games.
Alex Bregman Has Turned His 2024 Season Around
Bregman put up huge numbers from 2018-19 for the Astros. It included two seasons of 30-plus home runs and at least 100 RBI to go along with two top-five finishes in American League MVP Award voting.
His performance between 2022 and 2023 hadn’t reached those levels, but they were still respectable. Bregman slugged 20-plus homers with at least 90 RBI in each campaign. This also included a .812 OPS in 1,380 plate appearances.
However, his 2024 season started slow before turning things around at the beginning of the summer. Through the end of May (236 plate appearances), Bregman was hitting .219/.280/.372 with seven homers, 26 RBI and 18 runs scored. Since the start of June (264 plate appearances), he’s slashed .296/.352/.498 with 11 homers, 32 RBI and 45 runs scored.
Bregman’s season-long statistics will likely at least land near what he’s done the past two years despite a slow start. It could put him in line for a contract in the $150 or $200 million range. The bigger questions will be how his market takes shape and if the Astros are willing to go to certain lengths to retain him.
