With a looming lockout this offseason, the New York Yankees must move fast in the free agency market to acquire championship caliber players ahead of next season. Glaring errors and lack of consistency have been the focal point of the Yankees’ abrupt exit of the ALDS this winter. With that in mind, here are five players the Yankees should pursue this offseason from the Free Agency market.
Number 1: Luis Arraez
His name has become synonymous with hits and for good reason. Arraez is a three-time batting champion who came eerily close to capturing a fourth this year (0.1% difference). A .316 career hitter whose had two seasons of at least 200 hits, Arraez has become a rare commodity in today’s power-driven game. Furthermore, Arraez is the rare player that walks more than striking out, with a career walk rate of 6.3% in comparison with his strikeout rate of 5.8%. How rare is this you may ask? According to StatMuse, the league average strikeout rate for both the American League and the National League hovered around 22% this past season.
The Yankees are in desperate need of consistency from the leadoff spot. I would argue that since the exit of Brett Gardner in 2021, New York has lacked a true leadoff hitter whose main goal is to get on base at any cost. Experimental projects like Trent Grisham at leadoff have been short-term band aids that have created an over dependence on power when the focus should be to get on base for Aaron Judge who usually hits second.
Arraez’s critics will be quick to point out his lack of power due to the fact he only has 42 career homeruns however, I would suggest that should matter very little for the Yankees. The 2026 Yankees had a batting average of .236 which ranked 26th in all of baseball while ranking 25th with 1,480 total strikeouts, making it very strenuous to win games. This year Trent Grisham led off games 81 times with an abysmal slash of .199 AVG/.303 OBP/.378 SLG. He managed to hit 13 homers and drive in 36 runs but also striking out 61 times.
On the defensive side, Arraez has improved tremendously from years past in which he has been severely undervalued in my estimation. From 2019-2025, Arraez was worth –55 Outs Above Average across all four infield spots, however this year Arraez came through with a +12 OAA and a +10 rating from Fielding Run Value. He still had a –4 rating from Defensive Runs Saved, but the signs of improvement were obvious.
Number 2: Adrian Morejon
A flame throwing lefty to accompany David Bednar, SIGN ME UP! Coming off an All-Star season in 2025 in which he posted a 13-6 win-loss record with 70 strikeouts and almost a sub-two ERA (2.08), the 27-year-old reliever did not miss a beat in 2026. Morejon posted a 9-3 record with a 2.83 ERA and a career-high 107 strikeouts across a career high of 86 innings pitched. Accompanied by a whooping 30.4 Strikeout rate, Morejon’s electric stuff is very much needed in a bullpen that lacks lefty firepower.
The New York Yankees finished 2026 with baseball’s second-best bullpen ERA (3.13), but maintaining that success could prove challenging with several key relievers entering free agency. Faced with the reality of losing David Bednar (Pending Qualifying Offer), Tim Hill, and Paul Blackburn, the Yankees must swing big for a reliever who can pitch multiple innings and get people out.
In the last five years, the Yankees have kept their distance from making large contract commitments to relievers after contracts to Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman did not go as planned. However, I would argue that given Morejon’s age and his lights out stuff on the mound, it would be a travesty not to have him in the Yankee bullpen.
Number 3: Ryan Jeffers or Carson Kelly
When your offense ranks in the bottom half of on-base percentage, you have some glaring holes to fix. When you add to this that from the catcher’s position, the New York Yankees ranked near the bottom of every major offensive ranking: 28th in Average, 22nd in Homeruns, 29th in Runs Batted in, 25th in On-Base Percentage and 27th in Slugging, you are seemingly playing with a man down. In steps Ryan Jeffers and Carson Kelly, who for all intents and purposes, would serve as a major upgrade to this position.
Let’s start with Jeffers, who in his age 29 season slashed .256AVG/.353OBP/.461SLG while hitting 14 homeruns and driving in 56 runs for the Minnesota Twins. He did miss approximately two months of action this year due to a fractured hamate bone in his left hand in May, but he did return to action and finished the year. According to the New York Times, since 2023, Jeffers has put up a 116 OPS+ while averaging 21.9 home runs and a 342. On-base percentage per 162 games. These stats make Jeffers an outstanding offensive upgrade to the Yankees’ catcher position. However, Jeffers has been average at best behind the plate due to only being ranked in the 37th percentile in Framing and struggling to hold runners on which has resulted in only catching 5 out of 64 base stealers this year.
In the case of Kelly, the 32-year-old veteran would bring a mixture of good defense and offense to the Yankees. Last season, Kelly slashed a .258AVG/.336OPS/.376SLG while hitting 10 homeruns and driving in 58 runs for the Chicago Cubs. On defense, Kelly ranked in the 54th percentile in pitch framing while also ranking 8th overall in ABS challenge successes and 9th in Blocking. However, Kelly does struggle with pop time to second base (1.96) and his arm strength is currently ranked 46th amongst catchers.
Overall, Kelly and Jeffers provide a veteran presence needed behind the plate in the Bronx in combination with Austin Wells’ great defensive presence. However, given Wells productivity struggles at offense, it may be time to either get a right-handed bat to face lefties or replace him altogether.
Number 4: David Bednar
At the top of general manager Brian Cashman’s priority list should be retaining closer David Bednar, who converted 35 of 39 save opportunities with a 2.47 ERA. Bednar has become a cornerstone for the Yankees bullpen since arriving in the Bronx in 2025, only blowing seven saves in 52 opportunities while having a 2.33 ERA.
There is cause for concern with Bednar however given the fact that he is entering his age 32 season with a strikeout rate dipped somewhat significantly in 2026 compared to 2025 (34.3% in 25 and 27.1% in 26 respectively). Bednar’s average fastball also dropped 0.9 mph in velocity as well, but I do believe Bednar has made the needed changes to his arsenal this season that will help him prevail in the long run. Bednar threw his splitter a whooping 41.2% of the time in his first full season with the Yankees and opponents only managed a .353 OPS according to Yahoo Sports.
With a Bullpen depleted by multiple free agents, losing Bednar at this particular time may not be helpful for the overall mission of winning a championship. If Bednar declines New York’s 23.15 million qualifying offer, then the Yankees need to offer a multi-year contract to keep Bednar in the bullpen moving forward.
Number 5: Alec Bohm
Last but not least, the Yankees must acquire a third baseman and while the market suggests possibly trading for a Casey Schmitt or Jordan Westburg, there is one intriguing free agent signing whose performed under pressure in a big market: Alec Bohm.
The 30-Year-Old Bohm is coming off an inconsistent year with the Philadelphia Phillies to say the least having only slashed a .249AVG/.315OBP/.383SLG with 15 homers and 88 Runs Batted In. However, Bohm has shown consistency in two things, driving in runs and striking out very little in an era where everyone seems to strikeout.
Bohm has driven in at least 88 runs in his last four seasons, something the New York Yankees haven’t had consistently since the retirement of Yankee legend Alex Rodriguez. Bohm has also struck out under 100 times in every season since 2023 in a league that strikeouts around 22%-23% of the time making Bohm an anomaly. As reported before, the Yankees not only struggled to get on base but had horrible numbers in terms of strikeouts.