Yankees Moving on from Soto

Cashman making movesšŸ’°KAT returns to MinnesotašŸŗ Sanders to NYG?šŸ¤”

Author

NY Sports
December 24, 2024

While the Yankees missed out on the Juan Soto sweepstakes, they have not ended their pursuit to upgrade their World Series runner-up roster. Instead of putting $765 million dollars into one player, Cashman has been given the ability to spread the wealth to multiple new pieces.

Max Fried pitching for the Atlanta Braves

His first pickup was former Atlanta Brave starting pitcher Max Fried. Fried inked an eight-year, $218 million deal last week to make him the highest paid lefty pitcher ever. While eight years seems very long for a pitcher at age 30 considering how frequent injuries are nowadays, the Yankees have a lot of confidence in the two-time All-star. His addition to an already strong starting rotation that brought the Yankees to their first World Series since 2009 will have the potential to be lethal this season. Fried has posted a 3.07 ERA over his first eight major league seasons with the Atlanta Braves. He finished second in the NL Cy Young Award race in 2022 and won three Gold Glove Awards.

Devin Williams on the Milwaukee Brewers

Next, Cashman continued to upgrade the bullpen by trading for Devin Williams, one of the best closers in the game, from the Milwaukee Brewers. Nicknamed the ā€œAirbenderā€, the two-time All-Star and two-time National League Reliever of the Year Award winner posts a 1.66 ERA since the beginning of the 2022 season, putting him solidly in the top tier of big league relievers. If Luke Weaver can continue his success from the latter half of last year, this duo could be the best 8th and 9th inning closer duo in the league. The Yankees had to deal homegrown arm Nestor Cortes in the deal who had a down year last season and fell out of the Yankees starting rotation.

Former NL MVP Cody Bellinger

Now here comes the bats. The Yankees knew that they needed offensive power to fill the massive hole left by Juan Soto and decided to start collecting former MVPs. Their first get was with a trade with the Chicago Cubs for outfielder Cody Bellinger, sending pitcher Cody Poteet and cash to the Chicago Cubs. He will likely bat in the top/middle of the order and play center field sliding captain Aaron Judge back to right. His last season was a down year by his standards, batting only .266 with 18 homers and 78 RBIs, but his pairing next to Judge and Stanton, as well as the Yankees short porch, will likely help him get back to MVP like numbers.

2x NL MVP Paul Goldschmidt

Last, but not least, is the new Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt. He has been among the most consistent hitters of the 21st century. He has hit .289/.381/.510 with 362 home runs over a 14-year career as well as earning himself 4 gold gloves at first. He will be replacing locker room favorite Anthony Rizzo, but his veteran presence and leadership will likely make that transition relatively smooth. The only cause for concern is Goldys age of 37, however, the 1-year deal will allow the Yankees flexibility if things donā€™t work out as planned to go after Vlad Guerrero Jr. next offseason.

Through all these moves the Yankees are showing they are not taking the Juan Soto departure lying down. The Yankee currently have the second highest odds to win it all next season at +850 behind only the Dodgers. The Yankees are still, on paper, the best team in the American League, so as per usual, it is still World Series or bust for this historic organization.

ā€” Top 5 stories this week ā€”

1. Knicks Dominate the T-Wolves in KATā€™s Return

Trade lookin pretty good right nowā€¦

After the blockbuster trade dealing Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo for Karl-Anthony Towns, this was the first regular season faceoff between the teams. It was an emotional night for both parties, which ended in a one-sided victory for the New York Knicks. Karl-Anthony Towns completely dismantles the Timberwolves with stats of 32 points, 20 rebounds, and shooting 10/12 from the court. Itā€™s safe to say that the Knicks fleeced the Timberwolves.

2. Woody Johnson uses Madden Ratings to Make Trades

Bring back Leon Hess

This is the most Jets story ever. Even when you think that you have heard all of the inside stories proving the Jets are the most dysfunctional organization in sports, time and time again they one up themselves. According to Dianna Russini, a trade to bring Jerry Jeudy to the Jets was fully agreed to by both parties with the only remaining step being owner Woody Johnson signing off on the deal. However, Johnsonā€™s sons Jack and Brick advised him to stop the trade at the last minute due to Juedys Madden rating not being good enough for his sons standards. What a joke.

I could get used to seeing this

While in New York supporting his teammate Travis Hunter at the Heisman ceremony, top QB prospect Shedeur Sanders made sure to link up with Giants standout receiver Malik Nabers. They were videoed playing a casual game of catch in the streets of Manhattan. Shedeurs father and coach, Deion Sanders, said that if the Giants had their choice, they are drafting Shedeur with their first-round pick. With the Giants now in sole possession of the first overall pick, this short video could be a teaser for a QB and WR connection fans will watch for years to come.

4. Soto Doesnā€™t Talk to His Old Yankee Teammates

Ghosting Aaron Judge is WILD

While during his first official press conference as a New York Met, Juan Soto revealed that he hasnā€™t spoken to any of his Yankee teammates since they fell short of the World Series back in November. This goes to show how it was always about the money with Soto. All the rumors of his connection to the organization and his teammates giving the Yankees an advantage were farfetched. The power of the pinstripes is not what it used to be.

5. Giants Havenā€™t Won at Home in a Very, Very Long Time.

The tank is strong

The Giants have now lost 10 games in a row for the first time in franchise history. Even among the all too frequent disappointing Giant seasons we have endured recently, this is really rock bottom. The Giants havenā€™t had the worst record in the NFL in the Super Bowl era and have never gone winless against the division in their 100 year history. I guess it is only up from here!

NEW YORK JOCK EXCHANGE šŸ“ˆšŸ“‰

RISERS: Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt are the first batting additions to the Soto-less Yankees this offseason and are expected to have instant major roles in the Yankees offense. Davante Adams has not slowed down at all in his age 32 season with the Jets, scoring 4 touchdowns over the past 3 games and averaging 125 yards per game over that span. Sean Manaea re-signed with the Mets on a 3-year, $75 million deal. Malik Nabers broke Odell Beckhams rookie reception record on Sunday in a loss to the Falcons.

LOSERS: Drew Lock threw 2 pick-sixes to lead the Giants to their 10th straight loss for the first time in franchise history. Former Rangers second overall pick Kaapo Kakko got traded to Seattle Kraken for almost nothing. Darius Slayton has not been as involved in the Giants offense ever since the Daniel Jones departure. Jericho Sims is slowly being phased out of the Knicks rotation and could very likely be traded at the deadline. Matt Rempe has been suspended for 8 games for an illegal in game hit.

THIS WEEKS SCHEDULE:

  • Knicks vs Spurs, Wednesday, Dec 25 at 12 PM šŸŽ…

  • Nets at Bucks, Thursday, Dec 26 at 8 PM

  • Knicks at Magic, Friday, Dec 27 at 7 PM

  • Nets vs. Spurs, Friday, Dec 27 at 7:30 PM

  • Knicks at Wizards, Saturday, Dec 28 at 7 PM

  • Rangers at Lightning, Saturday, Dec 28 at 7 PM

  • Islanders vs. Penguins, Saturday, Dec 28 at 7:30 PM

  • Jets at Bills, Sunday, Dec 29 at 1 PM

  • Giants vs. Colts, Sunday, Dec 29 at 1 PM

  • Nets at Magic, Sunday, Dec 29 at 3:30 PM

  • Islanders at Penguins, Sunday, Dec 29 at 5:30 PM