The New York Yankees must decide if they have any desire to bring back Jazz Chisholm Jr back next season. Chisholm’s contract expires after his worst hitting season in the MLB lost any faith the Yankees fan base had in him. Multiple reports have confirmed that the Yankees will prioritize retaining and going after other talents over Jazz.
The Athletic and The New York Times have added a stronger report that Chisholm won’t get any offers at all from the Yankees:
“Chisholm is less likely to receive the qualifying offer from the club because he could accept it and try to reset his market entering the 2028 free-agent class. The second baseman had his worst offensive season by wRC+ since 2021, and his contact-quality metrics were the lowest of his career. It also spoke volumes when the Yankees benched Chisholm in an elimination game during the American League Division Series.”
The report states that the Yankees don’t want to send out the modest qualifying offer to Chisholm out of fear he’ll accept it. Jazz could try to build his value back up in New York with the short right field porch in Yankee Stadium. However, it appears that the Yankees want to start Anthony Volpe at second base and move on from Chisholm for good.
Why Yankees Don’t Want Jazz Chisholm Back
A disappointing season saw Chisholm as arguably the biggest culprit for the offense struggling. Injuries to Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton saw the Yankees relying on their other veteran hitters to step up in a season of contention.
Chisholm is a respected hitter after experience strong success with the Miami Marlins during his best seasons. The Yankees needed Jazz to be a consistently great source of offense, but his stats were below average across the entire league.
Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger had the best seasons of the everyday hitters. Chisholm having just a slightly better season would have helped the Yankees in the AL East race. Poor hitting and too many costly mistakes made Jazz an underachiever. Yankees fans even booed Chisholm during his final at bat in the ALDS.
Jazz Chisholm May Be Next Yankees Villain
American League teams like the Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Angels have been rumored to have interest in Chisholm ahead of the offseason. Jazz signing with another AL team could see him becoming a Yankees villain since the fans already have started to boo him.
Few players wear their emotions on their sleeves as much as Chisholm does with genuine reactions. Jazz having a bounce back season and/or having good road appearances in Yankee Stadium will see him letting the fans know about it. The Yankees also need help to make up the gap with the Tampa Bay Rays.
Brian Cashman will look poorly if Chisholm has a strong season, and the Yankees fail to upgrade him. Volpe has been a below average hitter for most of his MLB career, but he showed improvement when called up to play second base in September. The Yankees must find the right player for second base or risking this move backfiring.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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