The Yankees mostly opted for the status quo, as their 2026 club will look a lot like the 2025 version. A few small differences could take them up a notch.
Major League Signings
- OF Cody Bellinger: Five years, $162.5MM (includes opt-outs after 2027 and 2028, $20MM signing bonus)
- OF Trent Grisham: One year, $22.025MM (accepted qualifying offer)
- 1B Paul Goldschmidt: One year, $4MM
- LHP Ryan Yarbrough: One year, $2.5MM
- IF/OF Amed Rosario: One year, $2.5MM
- RHP Paul Blackburn: One year, $2MM
2026 spending: $85.525MM
Total spending: $195.525MM
Trades and Claims
- Selected RHP Cade Winquest from the Cardinals in Rule 5 draft
- Claimed RHP Kaleb Ort off waivers from Angels (later lost to Angels via waivers)
- Acquired LHP Ryan Weathers from Marlins for OF Dillon Lewis, OF Brendan Jones, IF Dylan Jasso, IF Juan Matheus
- Claimed OF Marco Luciano off waivers from Orioles (later outrighted)
- Claimed OF Michael Siani off waivers from Dodgers (later lost back to Dodgers via waivers)
- Claimed RHP Dom Hamel off waivers from Rangers (later outrighted)
- Acquired RHP Angel Chivilli from Rockies for 1B T.J. Rumfield
- Traded LHP Jayvien Sandridge to Angels for cash considerations
- Claimed OF Yanquiel Fernández off waivers from Rockies (later outrighted)
- Claimed RHP Osvaldo Bido off waivers from Angels
- Acquired IF Max Schuemann from Athletics for RHP Luis Burgos
Option Decisions
- OF Cody Bellinger declined $25MM player option in favor of $5MM buyout (later re-signed)
- Team exercised $3MM club option on LHP Tim Hill
- Team declined $5MM club option on RHP Jonathan Loáisiga
Notable Minor League Signings
- Rafael Montero, Randal Grichuk, Paul DeJong, Seth Brown, Jonathan Ornelas, Michael Arias, Yerry Rodríguez, Ali Sánchez, Zack Short, Adam Kloffenstein, Payton Henry, Dylan Coleman
Extensions
- None to date
Notable Losses
- Devin Williams, Luke Weaver, Jonathan Loáisiga, Austin Slater, Mark Leiter Jr. (non-tendered), Scott Effross (non-tendered), Ian Hamilton (non-tendered), Jake Cousins (non-tendered, still unsigned), Allan Winans (signed with NPB club)
There was a lot to like about the Yankees in 2025, but they came up just a bit short of the ultimate goal. They won 94 games in the regular season, the same as the Blue Jays, with Toronto only taking the division title based on the tiebreaker rules. The Yanks got a Wild Card spot and took out the Red Sox but were felled by the Jays in the Division Series.
Going into the 2025-26 offseason, a lot of the key pieces would be remaining in place. The area with the greatest potential for change was the outfield, which was a strength in 2025. Aaron Judge won his third American League MVP Award. Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham enjoyed productive seasons (a breakout, career-best year in the latter’s case). Grisham and Bellinger both headed to free agency at the start of the offseason, the latter by triggering an opt-out in his previous contract.
Theoretically, the Yankees could have turned to some internal replacements, but there would be big risks there. Jasson Domínguez had an uneven year in 2025. His offense was passable but not too exciting. In 429 plate appearances, he hit just ten home runs. A 9.6% walk rate helped his on-base percentage, leading to a .257/.331/.388 line and 103 wRC+. He stole 23 bases but received awful grades for his left field defense. His minus-7 Defensive Runs Saved and minus-10 Outs Above Average were some of the lowest among big league outfielders.
There’s also Spencer Jones, who crushed 35 home runs on the farm last year, including 19 at Triple-A. However, he posted those homers while striking out in 35.4% of his plate appearances. Presumably, he’d strike out even more frequently against better competition in the big leagues. No qualified major leaguer struck out at a higher rate than 32.3% in 2025.
With some questions about both Domínguez and Jones, and the Yankees always in win-now mode, it seemed like the outfield would be a priority. One spot was quickly filled, as Grisham somewhat surprisingly accepted the qualifying offer. His career had been unimpressive prior to 2025, but the breakout was extreme. He hit 34 home runs and drew walks at a 14.1% clip. Grisham’s .235/.348/.464 line led to a 129 wRC+. His defensive grades slipped, but he was considered a strong fielder in every other season of his career, so it’s possible last year’s downturn was more of an odd, one-year blip than a true decline.
Skeptics could point to Grisham’s larger body of work, with a .191/.298/.353 line over the previous three seasons combined, but there were reasons to believe Grisham could cash in on that strong season. Just one offseason earlier, Jurickson Profar had done precisely that. After years of subpar performances, Profar parlayed his strong 2024 season into a three-year, $42MM deal with Atlanta. Grisham went into free agency younger and with a better defensive reputation, so he had a case to top Profar’s guarantee.
MLBTR predicted Grisham could get $66MM over four years, even with the QO attached, but he decided to return to the Bronx for just one year at $22.025MM. A multi-year deal at that same annual value may not have been there, but a three- or four-year deal at a lighter rate with a larger overall guarantee seems like it would have been feasible. Grisham would be a bargain for the Yankees if he can come anywhere close to last year’s performance, and doing so would position him for a major contract next winter.
With Grisham back in the fold, the Yankees still had one outfield spot to consider. They were connected to various names both in free agency and via trade, including Kyle Tucker, Luis Robert Jr. and others, but a reunion with Bellinger always made a lot of sense. He had thrived in his one year in the Bronx. Bellinger hit .272/.334/.480 for a 125 wRC+ on the year overall but with a massive .302/.365/.544 line and 152 wRC+ when playing in Yankee Stadium with its short porch.
The two seemed a perfect match for each other, but the courting process dragged out nonetheless. Bellinger remained on the open market into January. Reports trickled out indicating that the Yankees had made him an offer, then another. There was reportedly an impasse, with the Yankees offering five years and Bellinger seeking a longer deal, but the two sides finally reached an agreement in late January.
The $162.5MM guarantee and five-year term were within the realm of expectations. MLBTR had predicted five years and a slightly lesser guarantee of $140MM. The Bellinger deal was particularly notable for being frontloaded and having two opt-outs. He’ll get a $20MM signing bonus and big salaries of $32.5MM in the first two years, followed by salaries just under $26MM in the final three. Since he can opt out after 2027 and 2028, it’s possible for him to bank $85MM in the first two years and then return to the open market after his age-31 season. The nature of that deal means that Bellinger’s hit for the competitive balance tax will be higher than usual.
After Bellinger was back in the fold, there was some speculation that Domínguez and/or Jones could end up on the trade block. To this point, however, there hasn’t been any strong indications that the Yankees have considered that route. With Grisham only signed for one more year and Bellinger potentially opting out after 2027, there are future opportunities available for those youngsters.
Though the outfield was the main target, the rotation needed some consideration as well. The Yankees will be getting Gerrit Cole back at some point in 2026, after he spent 2025 recovering from Tommy John surgery, but he still won’t be ready by Opening Day. They will also be without Carlos Rodón to start the season, as he had surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow. Clarke Schmidt had UCL surgery in July of last year and will begin the season on the shelf as well.
The Yanks were connected to some big names over the winter, including Framber Valdez, Edward Cabrera, Michael King, Freddy Peralta, Tatsuya Imai and MacKenzie Gore. Their rotation strike ended up being less splashy than those options. They sent four prospects to the Marlins to acquire lefty Ryan Weathers.
Weathers was once a notable prospect and has shown some flashes of potential in the majors, but not over a long sample size. He had good results with the Marlins in 2024 and 2025 but some injuries limited him in both seasons. He tossed 125 innings over those two campaigns and produced a 3.74 earned run average, 22% strikeout rate, 6.8% walk rate and 45.6% ground ball rate.
A more proven arm could have been preferable, but a nice benefit of Weathers is that he’s controlled for three more years and still has an option remaining. He should get a rotation job alongside Max Fried, Cam Schlittler, Will Warren and Luis Gil to start the season. Like Weathers, each of Schlittler, Warren and Gil can be optioned. A stint in the minors for someone in that group is possible if everyone is healthy when Rodón and Cole return. In the meantime, the Yanks also brought back Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn to serve as veteran swingmen.
Paul Goldschmidt became a free agent after the 2025 season, but first base wasn’t a big priority since Ben Rice took over that job. The Yanks were able to bring Goldy back on a modest $4MM deal, seemingly to serve a more complementary role this time. His bat was around league average in 2025, but he still crushed lefties. Since the Yankee lineup skews left-handed, there’s a role for Goldschmidt. Amed Rosario was also brought back for similar reasons and the Yanks also added Randal Grichuk via a minor league deal.
In the bullpen, Devin Williams and Luke Weaver became free agents after 2025, but the Yankees seemingly tried to address those departures proactively. At the 2025 deadline, their three relief additions were David Bednar, Camilo Doval and Jake Bird. Since all three would still be under club control for 2026, the Yanks may have felt less pressure to replace Williams and Weaver this winter.
Their most notable bullpen move was fairly modest, as they acquired Angel Chivilli from the Rockies. He is still unproven, with a 6.18 ERA in 90 1/3 innings. The Yanks will hope that getting him away from Coors Field will help. He has an intriguing arsenal with high-90s velocity and strong ground ball rates. Chivilli isn’t slated for free agency for at least five years and still has an option remaining. The Yanks also took a shot on Cade Winquest in the Rule 5 draft. He had a 3.99 ERA in the minors last year.
There was some chatter around Jazz Chisholm Jr. this offseason. Since he’s slated for free agency after 2026, there were some trade rumors and the possibility of an extension also came up. It never seemed especially likely that the Yanks would move on from him, and he indeed is still on the roster. The Yankees don’t do many extensions and still haven’t done anything with Chisholm, though he has said he’s open the possibility. It’s theoretically possible for momentum to build at any time, but Jon Heyman of The New York Post reported this week that substantive talks have still not occurred.
Ultimately, the roster is going to look very similar to last year’s. Shortstop Anthony Volpe will miss some time due to offseason shoulder surgery but could rejoin the club in April. José Caballero will cover that spot in the interim. Apart from that, the position player group is essentially identical. There’s a bit more change on the pitching side, but the staff is also going to have a lot of continuity.
There’s not really anything wrong with that. The Yankees were one of the best teams in the league last year. Running back mostly the same squad should put them in position to be really good again. It’s also possible they could be a bit better. They will get Cole back at some point, which should give them a boost, and they’ll get a full season from Schlittler, who just debuted last July. If Weathers can stay healthy, he’s another potential bonus. If there are obvious shortcomings on display in the next few months, the Yanks could address those at the deadline, but for now the roster has been tweaked more so than overhauled.
How would you grade the Yankees' offseason?
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
Poo York Stankees lmao gottem
Mommy’s calling. Run along now, child.
Says the one who clearly got upset about a clearly light hearted joke. Lighten up Sal
My mom thinks they stink as well.
big if true
So does my dad. Which reminds me, we’re going up to the Enchanted Kingdom on Sunday to visit him. 🤣
web site will not allow me to grade the teams offseason, giving them a “C”
You aren’t worthy of a vote. Lol.
Poll isn’t functional and lacks the gray area of +/- grades, but I’d give their off season a B- or C+.
A lot of upside. A lot of running it back with guys who had their shining moments, but ultimately didn’t get it done.
A lot of over indexing on certain positions, that could prove for some very difficult choices if one guy who is very very expensive is doing good but not great and another guy who is very very cheap is having a consistent and undeniable break out year, etc.
Their pitching losses were ultimately plusses, or more commonly phrased, addition by subtraction and they can always find a couple more diamonds in the rough that are lower profile and could yield far more effective results on the mound.
Not sure what was up with the poll, but I deleted it and re-created it, and it seems to be working now! Thanks for the heads up, from those who pointed it out.
As I’ve said before, ranking a team’s offseason is a funny exercise. The Yankees neither improved or weakened their lineup because it’s basically the same as it was last year. Is that an A because they’ll be competitive this year? Is it an F because they didn’t do anything new?
Are we ranking their roster or their offseason? Their roster is an A-. Their offseason was an F.
I always start at C and upgrade or downgrade as needed. Since the Yankees added a good piece with Weathers but lost some arms in the pen, I would go with C. Though losing Williams was addition by subtraction.
The Yankees didn’t need a lot of improvement. Assuming their injured starters don’t face issues coming back, they’ll be the best in the majors during the second half.
Jimmy – There’s like 5 teams that have been credited with the best starting rotation this season, including Toronto and Boston.
I wouldn’t bank on Cole immediately returning to Cy Young form, he’ll need some time to shake off the rust.
The possible highest I can see is a B, but I would give them a C. They did not make the team any better from last year.
Lazy offseason. The Yankees weren’t good enough to win yet made no big improvements. Just shows they are happy being good enough so fans don’t stop spending.
IUID
“The Yankees weren’t good enough to win ”
What if they were good enough, but just didn’t win?
Losing Weaver, Williams, Hamilton and Leiter is basically addition by subtraction after those 4 essentially tanked the Yankees chances of winning the division.
While it is difficult and rash to say the loss of players makes a team better, given you have no way of knowing the replacements are an imprivement. But in a vacuum, I would agree. Those four cost the team six to ten wins last season.
Out of all of them Weaver was the most dissapointing. He had these weeks where he just could not get outs (especially in the playoffs).
It was surprising how bad he became since he was very good in 24.
I have no issue with the way the Yanks handled their offseason. If you believe in a team, why not double down on it?
Cody Bellinger coming back was a must get for them. He clicked here.
That said, it wasn’t a given he was coming back and they could read the writing on Tucker’s market. So offering the QO to Trent Grishman was a failsafe. If he took it well that’s hopefully another 30+ homers we won’t have to look for with high caliber defense. And if not you get a pick, but it was never about the pick, and if you think that, that’s naive. I’ve said this too often, but the fact that folks don’t think the Yankees front office don’t know how to do their jobs is bananas stemming from either hate or entitlement.
Getting Ryan Weathers was an excellent out of left field move. Didn’t cost as high prospects as another SP and could have equal or better results–health of course withstanding.
I like a lot of the smaller moves, too, bringing back Rosario, trading for Chivelli, claims like Bido and Shuemann, even the Winquest Rule 5.
And if you discount what they did at the deadline–Bednar, Doval, McMahon, Cabby and more, then that’s on you. We covered a lot of spots already with players that were better than rentals. Cashman should be getting more credit for that. And you cant fault him for saying look whos coming back from the IL! I know these aren’t offseason moves, but they factor into the game plan for sure.
Anyways, that said, it’s still hard to give an A without some splashy signing, but B+ from me.
Of course you have no issue, Cashman could do just about anything to you and you’d thank him for it
@ Beg
I can’t speak for Sal but I know I’m thankful just to be on the same planet as BC, what a guy! 🤣
There wasn’t really a whole lot to do. We have a lot of SP depth and Cashman made most of the moves he would’ve had to do in the off-season in trades mid-season. I am also not someone who always defends Cashman, I would’ve gotten rid of him a few years ago, but I don’t really see what more could’ve been accomplished assuming we’re not the Dodgers and just sign every top free agent regardless if it makes sense for the roster
Taking the mid season moves into account is part of it in a very direct way. He didn’t improve on the guys he thought would be good acquisitions and were not. We are going to be complaining about the poor bullpen, 3b and SS play all season…again!
CF will be a problem because Grish is not a 34 HR guy, but he is a .200/290/650 guy.
Weathers was a solid pickup, but will he be a starter all season with Cole, Rodon and Schmidt coming back? Probably not, he then turns into a long releiver/6th starter. High cost for a guy like that. Why not use that capital on upgrading a position of need?
Then bringing back the same guys from a team that wasn’t good enough causes me to give him a D to F grade.
Good GMs can build from their minors as well as bring in good talent. Why not let JD and SJ see what they can do with full playing time? Why not improve the 3rd base offense?
That was not a high cost, most of those prospects probably will not pan out. This is the Yankee farm system we’re talking about.
Scott,
Bednar was great, Doval was better than Weaver at least. Caballero was really good. Amed, good. McMahon’s defense was stellar, but his offense wasn’t, sure, but he was always an up and down guy with potential for more. It would be silly to invest in another 3B if he’s still here. Unlocking his potential is a much better scenario especially again with GG defense.
Grish has never had the opportunity that he had last season, and he’s always been well-regarded, maybe he’s a late bloomer. Either way it’s one season!
Rotation always will always work itself out as SP are always getting injured unfortunately. I don’t anticipate Schmidt being much of a factor this season tbh.
The team was good enough to be tied in the AL East, and the playoffs are a crapshoot of who gets hot vs. who is not. A good or bad start is all it can take. Toronto was not as good as the Yanks on paper.
JD didn’t run with what he was given last season. He was ok, not good, definitely not great, and Jones was a whiff machine. Another season of sharpening their skills won’t hurt them, and one or both will almost definitely be up this season, too, with Giancarlo’s health unfortunately.
I have no problem with a B offseason. Belli was the key. He’ll end up being expensive if he opts out in ’27 or ’28 but that will only be if he performs really well, which works for me.
Seem to have good (not great) depth at SP and RP. Would had like to see a RP signing (Fairbanks) cuz after Bednar it’s a crap shoot on what to expect even though there is nice upside in Cruz, Doval, etc.
I do have concerns about Cole, Wells and McMahon.
C. Nothing terrible, nothing spectacular. Probably will end up about the same as last year.
I give it a B. They didn’t make any big moves but outside of signing Tucker, who was never going to the Yankees, a big move wasn’t available. The team they’re rolling out to start this season is better than the one from last year that won 94 games. They’re also getting Cole back at some point in June. The pitching depth in the upper levels of the minors if far better and they don’t have any glaring weakness. The bullpen could be an issue but I like the new guys they’ve added and relievers are always available at the deadline. I think the Yankees comfortably win the AL East and are probably the best team in the AL
How is it better then the team they had last year? It is actually worse. We’ve got regression candidates all over the field and very few that are candidates for improvement. Cole is going to struggle when he comes back at first, all TJ guys struggle early on. Now that he is coming back in late June, it’s going to be tough to depend on him. We’ve seen what happens with Rodon when he misses spring training, he is not good.
So how is this team better?
Who’s a regression candidate besides Grisham? Wells, Volpe and McMahon can’t get much worse from a projection standpoint. Rodon and Fried might regress but the rotation as a whole could be just as good and hopefully better than in the ALCS. TOR is best in division to start the year. BOS and BAL are better but not to the point that I expect NY to not make the playoffs.
The Yankees went into last year with both Stroman and Carrasco in the rotation, an absolute black hole at 3B, and a weak bench. What are you basing “regression candidates all over the field” on other than personal feelings? Cole is targeting an early June return and has already hit 97 in a bullpen session. If you’re referring to 2023 with Rodon, he clearly wasn’t healthy that whole year. This team is fine
I gave them a C, but I think they’re going to make moves at the deadline if they need to so it’s not all bad.
They will make the postseason and get squashed like a bug by any one of the many vastly superior franchises. Even with all their cheating and help from the dumpires. And so it goes. Losers.
Wasn’t much they could do, but I feel like they could’ve done better. C.
Cheating is right.
Yanks were top in bad umpire ball/strike calls going their way in 2025 as usual. Os were in bottom 5. ABS will level the playing field and take the ump NY bias out of the game. Likely cost them a few wins.
Dynasty was indeed right. Cole in the 2nd half will improve their ceiling and prob be their no. 2 or 3 starter in the WC round.
So mid. Definitely not built for playoffs
We grade big-money teams on a curve—we always expect them to buy something new and shiny. The Yankees did not do this. So, boring off-season, not bad, boring, but because we think they could have done more, they get a C. The last time the Yankees won the WS it was with a team that made 3 major offseason purchases, CC, Burnett and Teixeira,
The Yankees did a fair amount of heavy lifting at last years trade deadline, if they hadn’t and this off-season played exactly the same then it would have been a disaster. They didn’t do a lot, but they really didn’t need a lot. I do wonder if they were hoping Grisham would decline the QO which would have allowed them to pursue other options though
Good point about Grisham, although it’s not clear what they might have spent the money on, since they’d have to have spent for a Grisham replacement. I think part of their problem is that they are tweeners….not really quite championship caliber, but not a team you want to break up.
If they win in the mid-90s and make the playoffs, they’re roughly as much championship caliber as any of the other entrants, other than maybe the Dodgers, but in a ten-team playoffs, even that difference is going to be fairly mild.
What other CF option was available? They could have swapped out Grisham for Roberts, but can’t be sure that’s an improvement. Still, I wouldnt count on Grisham repeating those career numbers. Trading for McMann was a mistake (last year) and not moving either Jones or Dominguez in trade was another mistake. The Yankees are always in win now mode, so will never have room to play a flawed rookie. They get credit for hedging their bets with minor league signings. C
I think we would have been fine with Jones or Belli in CF. Heck I’d even like to see Dominguez in CF for an extended time to see how he does.
Grish’s 22mil could have been used for bullpen help or go towards 3B.
Dominguez can’t play LF, how would he do better in CF? Jones needs to cut down his strikeouts to sniff Yankee Stadium, or hope for several injuries
Harrison Bader is fairly similar player, solid defensive CF coming off a career year at the plate. He got about half what Grisham did. Conceivably the Yankees could have put that $10 million towards a bullpen arm (or get most of the way there).
So the thought experiment is who regresses towards the mean more, Grisham or Bader?
the 10M difference is based on grisham having the health tool
Assuming Cole comes back strong, their starting staff is pretty solid and would be a problem in any post-season series.
I mean, whatever… the Yanks are always good. The ALE is gonna be a gauntlet this year.
2nd in the AL east and division series losers you know you gots to run that shizzle back baby!!!
they were a top-5 team in 2025 and didn’t get worse so… hooray? i don’t count the previous year’s trade deadline as part of the offseason so unless you think weathers is going to stay healthy and break out, the biggest additions were by subtraction. lagrange/elmer/lombard looking good in spring training has me a little less grumpy so i gave them a C
You forgot Randal Grichuk
A. Yankees won 94 games last year WITHOUT full seasons from Bednar, Schlittler, Rosario, McMahon, Doval, Caballero and are getting Cole & Oswaldo back… Weathers is a key add & they have minor league pitching up the wazoo for depth or trade capital at the deadline. They led league in OPS and runs scored and got rid of a lot of underperforming relievers. Addition by subtraction. The offseason might not excite Yankees fans but this team is MUCH better than they were one calendar year ago and this team had chemistry last year and are hungry like I haven’t seen since after the 1995 and 1997 playoffs.
This team could easily become great. The starting rotation is very solid and Cruz, Lagrange, and Hampton as depth pieces is impressive.
If Wells can turn the corner the lineup will be stacked. Another 90+ wins with the chance to make serious noise if the rotation clicks. Can’t wait…
A somewhat disappointing offseason. Hal is cheap. Also looks like he is preparing for a work stoppage. Yankees stood pat while other teams in the AL East got better. Yankees will be lucky to get a WC playoff slot.