{"id":511093,"date":"2026-01-08T10:34:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T10:34:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/511093\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T10:34:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T10:34:19","slug":"could-nico-hoerner-add-balance-to-the-yankees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/511093\/","title":{"rendered":"Could Nico Hoerner add balance to the Yankees?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Yankees are currently deep in the throes of a very slow and quiet offseason, one that has seen the team\u2019s largest external addition be\u2026 Cade Winquest?<\/a><\/p>\n

That shouldn\u2019t remain the case for much longer, or at least we hope. The current buzz around the team pertains to their pursuit of an established starting pitcher via trade, whether that\u2019s a MacKenzie Gore,<\/a> Freddy Peralta<\/a>, or Edward Cabrera,<\/a> and, of course, looking to bridge the financial gap between ownership and Scott Boras Cody Bellinger.<\/p>\n

Regardless of the individual targets, it seems like the top priorities are rotation and outfield help, but there are other areas of the roster where they can pursue upgrades. There have been brief links to free agent infielder Bo Bichette recently, but a cheaper and more intriguing option could await the team in ChiTown.<\/p>\n

There have been rumblings that the Chicago Cubs, who have been strangely frugal of late (especially with them not even attempting to retain Kyle Tucker), could be willing to deal from their major league roster, especially rentals.<\/p>\n

While these rumors do not necessarily suggest Nico Hoerner could be among them, recent reporting saying the Cubs are interested<\/a> in Bichette and Alex Bregman could create a situation where Hoerner would be on the block to open up second base. And it just so happens that the Yankees have an interest in the Gold Glove infielder.<\/p>\n

2025 Statistics: 156 games, 649 PA, .297\/.345\/.394, 7 HR, 61 RBI, 29 SB, 109 wRC+, 14 Outs Above Average, 4.8 fWAR<\/p>\n

2026 FanGraphs Depth Charts Projections: 156 games, 672 PA, .285\/.339\/.391, 9 HR, 64 RBI, 27 SB, 107 wRC+, 3.8 fWAR<\/p>\n

Contract Status: Entering final year of contract, making $12 million. Free agent after 2026.<\/p>\n

Hoerner was initially a first-round pick by the Cubs out of Stanford in 2018, selected No. 24 overall. A strong cameo in A-ball in his draft year, combined with his very mature defensive ability, vaulted him onto top 100 lists by 2019.<\/p>\n

The young shortstop spent most of 2019 in Double-A, but was directly promoted to the majors in September after Javier Baez hurt his hand and Addison Russell went into concussion protocol. The then-22-year-old stayed for the rest of the regular season due to the expanded rosters, doing just enough to give himself a good audition for a full-time role starting in 2020.<\/p>\n

He would play in 48 games in 2020, but would struggle mightily at the plate as he encountered growing pains. Yet, with Russell being non-tendered after his domestic violence suspension and Hoerner playing good defense at multiple positions, the stagnating Cubs allowed him to play through it.<\/p>\n

Initially, Hoerner played second base, third base, and shortstop regularly and even sprinkled in a few innings in the outfield. He would continue in that role into 2021, where his bat caught up and he established himself as an above-average major leaguer, even as he missed much of the season with injury. Since then, he\u2019s hit over .270 in five consecutive seasons with an above-average wRC+ in all five years. He has limited pop, but makes up for it with a career .340 OBP in 700 games.<\/p>\n

On the note of limited pop, he has some of the lowest exit velocities<\/a> in the league and thrives more on slap hitting. As such, he rarely whiffs or strikes out, but it limits the amount of damage he can do with the bat. His offensive profile isn\u2019t totally dissimilar to Luis Arraez, but when you are ten times the athlete (and that might be generous to Luis) and playing a premier position, it\u2019s easier to accept.<\/p>\n

Hoerner also brings more speed to a lineup that, while gradually getting more athletic, still has several slow players throughout the roster. He had an 82nd percentile sprint speed in 2025 and is a perennial candidate to swipe 30 bags a season.<\/p>\n

The best part about him, however, is his defense. He came up as a shortstop and has proven in his career to be one of the better defenders in all of baseball, but has only one year of playing shortstop primarily. Baez handled shortstop until 2021 and, despite Hoerner posting 13 DRS and 10 OAA at the position in 2022, he was moved to second base full time after the Cubs signed Dansby Swanson.<\/p>\n

As you might expect, a great defender like Hoerner has excelled at the easier position, winning two Gold Gloves since 2023. In his career, between second base and shortstop combined, he has 54 DRS and 74 OAA. In acquiring him, you\u2019d immediately get one of the top defenders in baseball.<\/p>\n

That versatility is also important to the Yankees\u2019 roster construction. For better or worse, the Yankees are at least listening to trade calls on fellow rental infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. and the team has upgradable positions at third base and shortstop. While Ryan McMahon\u2019s salary makes him a tough guy to move, less can be argued for Anthony Volpe, who will miss the start of the 2026 season with a shoulder injury and will likely battle Jose Caballero for the job afterwards.<\/p>\n

Adding Hoerner without moving Chisholm, for example, would allow Caballero to firmly move into a utility role that would likely have hime platooning in certain situations for Chisholm and McMahon. It could also lead to Volpe being moved, though his current trade value is unclear.<\/p>\n

Hoerner would also bring depth and balance to a Yankees lineup that will once again be lefty-heavy. Against left-handed pitching in 2025, the 28-year-old slashed .369\/.396\/.539 in 149 plate appearances and is hitting .314 in his career<\/a> against lefties, while at least being playable against right-handed pitching. In Hoerner, Caballero, and Amed Rosario, the Yankees would suddenly have three competent infielders that could face left-handed pitchers, balancing out a lineup that had become susceptible to the southpaw.<\/p>\n

The biggest issue with Hoerner might be his contract status. $12 million shouldn\u2019t be hard to swallow for a quality player, but with the Yankees McMahon $16 million and paying DJ LeMahieu $15 million to sit at home, Hal Steinbrenner may pause before committing more payroll to the infield, at least as long as retaining Bellinger and adding a pitcher remain the team\u2019s top priorities. on making a move like this when retaining Bellinger and getting a starting pitcher is a priority.<\/p>\n

What could also hurt is Hoerner being a pure rental. Having both he and Chisholm hit free agency at the same time, with both likely demanding sizable long-term deals, would mean likely losing at least one of them. The Yankees were in a similar conundrum with Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger, but used the qualifying offer to potentially keep both. Could the same happen here?<\/p>\n

Regardless, there is little certainty after the 2026 season. A potential lockout looms next offseason, and things could get ugly. Aaron Judge\u2019s peak might not last much longer, and if the 2027 season might truly be in jeopardy, it makes winning in 2026 that much more urgent, and the Yankees shouldn\u2019t hesitate to address any and all weaknesses.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Yankees are currently deep in the throes of a very slow and quiet offseason, one that has…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":511094,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2376],"tags":[5,4,1690,62,2548,2547,142,59636],"class_list":{"0":"post-511093","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-yankees","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-mlb","10":"tag-new-york","11":"tag-new-york-yankees","12":"tag-newyork","13":"tag-newyorkyankees","14":"tag-yankees","15":"tag-yankees-player-targets"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115859034257942536","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511093","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=511093"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511093\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/511094"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=511093"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=511093"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=511093"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}