New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman has kept building his Hall of Fame resume this offseason despite losing free agent star Juan Soto to the rival New York Mets.

From adding another ace in lefty Max Fried, shoring up the bullpen with Devin Williams to boosting the lineup more with Cody Bellinger, the Yankees have done everything but lay down since losing Soto. If anything, they’ve gotten busier.

And yet, the Bronx Bombers still have plenty of holes to fill. Who is going to play first base? What about third base? And is Cashman even done adding pitching?

Let’s take a look at these needs and how the Yankees can best meet them.

Third base

This is a tough call because, technically speaking, the Yankees have plenty of infielders who can man the hot corner. Jazz Chisholm Jr. learned the position on the fly after being acquired from the Marlins in July, and still posted outs above average (OAA) of +6. New York can also turn to former top prospect Oswald Peraza, or even super-utility switch-hitter Oswaldo Cabrera.

However, don’t be shocked if the Yankees look for a short-term agent on the free agent market. Former Padres infielder Ha-Seong Kim seems an ideal fit, as he can effectively play multiple infield positions. He’s also young enough at 29 and showed enough pop in his bat at spacious Petco Park that putting him in Yankee Stadium seems intriguing. Kim also doesn’t strike out a ton, so think of him as a more powerful Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

 

The pitching staff

This is an area where, for the most part, the Yankees are actually set. The rotation is good to go with Gerrit Cole, Fried, Carlos Rodon, Clarke Schmidt, and reigning Rookie of the Year Luis Gil. The bullpen needs some help, but perhaps Marcus Stroman can become an effective multi-inning man despite his high price tag.

The wild card in all of this is Japanese free agent Roki Sasaki, who was just posted by Nippon Professional Baseball’s (NPB) Chiba Lotte Marines. Sasaki, 23, posted a 2.02 ERA and 11.4 K/9 in four years with Chiba. Cashman told several sources Wednesday, including the Post, that the team would soon meet with Sasaki in-person.

Landing Sasaki likely means one thing in Yankeeland: Gil is bullpen-bound. Rookie of the Year or not, leading MLB in walks is unacceptable unless you’re Blake Snell. However, this seems more Cashman doing his due diligence as Sasaki has long been linked to either the Dodgers or Padres.

 

First base

Here, we have the biggest remaining piece of the Yankees’ offseason puzzle. The easy solution is sticking Bellinger here and then adding another corner outfielder; be it Teoscar Hernandez via free agency or someone else in a trade. However, we can’t ignore just how deep the first base market is this winter.

Cashman thus has several options outside of Bellinger. Does he overpay Pete Alonso to stick it to the Mets over Soto? What about a one-year deal for switch-hitting veteran Carlos Santana, who just won his first Gold Glove at age 38? New York also has rookie Ben Rice, who is really just an offseason regimen away from getting his swing right for MLB.

But there’s another intriguing option on the market: Former Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker. He’s a little older, turning 34 after Opening Day, but has 95 home runs with an .813 OPS over the last three years. If not for injuries in 2024, Walker easily would have hit 30 or more home runs for the third year in a row.

Add three consecutive Gold Gloves at first base with a combined OAA of +39 and fielding run value (FRV) of +30, and Walker is an ideal Yankees target. Perhaps even on a respectable two or three-year deal, despite his age. Early talks between both parties have since cooled, but could start back up again soon.

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