The Yankees Should Trade for Christian Yelich

My crazy idea

This morning, I proposed a pitching and defense strategy for the post-Soto Yankees. But what if they want to go in an offense-first direction? I want to throw out a fun idea.

I think Christian Yelich would make a great Yankee. And I think it’s a reasonable trade.

Yelich is going to be 33 years old next year. He’s owed $110.5 million over the next four years. He has a no trade clause. And while he missed half the season with a back injury, Yelich had a pretty impressive season in 2024:

Would Yelich earn $110.5 million in free agency? Probably not. He’s not a young man and coming off a back surgery. My guess is that he’d get a slightly better contract than Christian Walker, or something in the $80 million range. The Yankees might also have to pick up his 5th year mutual option to get him to waive the no-trade clause, adding $13.5 million to the guarantee.

On the other hand, his skills haven’t shown much sign of decline yet. He’s basically the same runner that he always was and nothing else seems to be declining. In fact, he’s striking out less than he has in years.

Between his contact and on base skills, he’s a pretty solid bet to OBP in the .360 range going forward. He’s been a bit of an off-and-on power hitter in recent years, sometimes becoming too much of a ground ball machine and sometimes lifting the ball.

Why would the Brewers want to trade Yelich? First, to get out from under the decline years of the contract. They are a small market club and could probably spend the money better elsewhere. Here’s a Brewers Blog arguing that they need to get rid of his contract. Second, because they have a pretty full outfield. They’ve already discussed having Yelich play first base. And third, because they can get something in return for him.

Yelich fits the Yankees real well. He’s a left fielder. He’s a left-handed batter without much in the way of platoon splits. He’s a great OBP guy to slot into the lineup ahead of Aaron Judge. He would fit in well batting second in front of Judge. He doesn’t exactly have a Yankee Stadium home run swing, but his center-opposite field approach could help him land a few more singles and doubles.

Here’s the downside: he’s in the same age bracket as Aaron Judge, Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon. There is a real risk that all of them get old at the same time. It could be a rough 2028 season. Furthermore, a Yelich-Dominguez-Judge outfield would be probably below average on defense.

The Brewers would want something in return for Yelich, although not a king’s ransom given the slightly below market value contract. Clark Schmidt feels like a pitcher that the Brewers could do a lot with. They could probably also use a shortstop to allow Joey Ortiz to play 3rd base, where he’s elite. Schmidt + Peraza? That may get a deal done.