After making the World Series in his first season with the New York Yankees in 2024 and joining the 30-30 club in 2025 despite missing an entire month with an oblique strain, it’s clear that Jazz Chisholm Jr.‘s influence on the Bombers has been considerable, to say the least. Yes, the team prides itself on hitting home runs and taking walks, but Chisholm adds another profile to the offense, one that helps make it one of the best in baseball.

Chisholm’s athleticism, energy, and flair are necessary traits for a Yankees lineup that lacked them before acquiring him from the Marlins in July of 2024. Now, after a year and a half of top-notch production, it’s hard to imagine New York’s batting order without the 28-year-old mashing in the middle of it.

2025 statistics: 130 games, 531 plate appearances, .242/.332/.481, 31 HR, 80 RBI, 126 wRC+, 10.9 BB%, 27.9 K%, 2 Defensive Runs Saved, 8 Outs Above Average, 4.4 fWAR

2026 FanGraphs DC projections: 141 games, 189 plate appearances, .238/.319/.441, 29 HR, 87 RBI, 112 wRC+, 9.8 BB%, 25.9 K%, 3.1 fWAR

Last year was quite eventful for the dynamic infielder. He saw his season interrupted in late April with what was deemed at the time a pretty significant oblique strain, yet he returned in early June and hit like he never left. Chisholm needed just 130 games to post a career-high in home runs with 31, and also stole 30 bases to round out an amazing year in which his 126 wRC+ represented his best mark over a full season.

Defensively, he struggled in 238 innings at the hot corner, with -4 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) and -3 Outs Above Average (OAA). Once he returned to his real defensive home in the middle of the infield, his fielding stats dramatically improved and the eye test confirmed as much. Basically, Chisholm was excellent in all facets of the game: batting, fielding, and running the bases.

What does he have in store for 2026? Well, given his age, experience, and recent performance, you could say he is right in the prime of his career. That means he may actually have an outside shot at joining the exclusive 40-40 club, something that just six major leaguers have done in the history of the game.

Of course, Chisholm will need to stay healthy if he’s going to have a shot at history. Throughout his career, he has experienced UCL, knee, oblique — multiple times — groin, and toe issues, and he hadn’t surpassed 125 games played in a season until 2024. The Yankees, to reach their collective goals, need Chisholm healthy. The last two years have been better on that front, but he has still missed 47 of 324 regular games between 2024 and 2025.

Chisholm, who is set to represent Team Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic next month, is playing under a $10.2 million salary in his third and final season of arbitration, which means he will be a free agent after the conclusion of the 2026 World Series if the Yankees don’t extend him.

At this point, an extension looks unlikely, but that doesn’t mean he can’t have a long-term future in New York. Chisholm loves the city and the team, and barring something unforeseen, the Yankees have to be considered the favorites to re-sign him.

First, however, is the 2026 campaign, one in which Chisholm and the Bombers would love to end a long World Series drought. They came relatively close 15 months ago when they fell to the Dodgers in the Fall Classic — where Chisholm hit a home run and stole four bases in five games — and will want to return to the last series of the season with their current core.

Nobody knows what the future holds for Chisholm, but he is undoubtedly a key cog in the Yankees’ lineup and has developed into one of the best second basemen in the league. If he stays fully healthy this year, he should be a lock for a 115-130 wRC+ with 25 homers and steals at the very least, and the ceiling is much, much higher.