The New York Yankees wrap up Spring Training on Monday and will begin making moves to trim the roster down to 26 players ahead of Opening Day, which arrives Thursday.
With a few days to go until the official start of the season, here’s a look at projecting the Yankees’ roster as they prepare to open the season against the Houston Astros.
Yankees’ Opening Day Roster Projection
Catcher (2)
- Jose Trevino
- Austin Wells
Considering how strongly Wells played this spring, it would be a mild surprise if the Yankees carried three catchers into the regular season.
Infield (5)
- Anthony Rizzo
- Gleyber Torres
- Anthony Volpe
- Oswaldo Cabrera
- Kevin Smith
The news that starting third baseman D.J. LeMahieu will start on the injured list means Cabrera’s roster spot is likely safe to begin the season. Smith seems like he’s heading toward a roster spot. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Yankees add a veteran free agent like Donovan Solano or Jean Segura, though.
Outfield (5)
- Aaron Judge
- Juan Soto
- Alex Verdugo
- Trent Grisham
- Oscar Gonzalez
The top four roster spots here are safe. Judge will be the everyday center fielder but the addition of Grisham as a part of the Soto trade gives the Yankees a comfortable, gold-glove option to spell him in the field once a week or so. Gonzalez is a wild card here, but he’s a quality bat to come off the bench.
Designated Hitter (1)
- Giancarlo Stanton
Coming off a strong showing this spring, Stanton is looking to put his disastrous 2023 season behind him. Expect Judge to get half-days as DH occasionally.
Starting Rotation (5)
- Nestor Cortes
- Carlos Rodon
- Marcus Stroman
- Clarke Schmidt
- Luis Gil
It’s not the most ideal rotation to begin the season with Gerrit Cole expected to miss 1-2 months due to an elbow injury. The Yankees really need Rodon to step up and find his swing-and-miss stuff. Gil was named the fifth starter after an excellent spring.
Bullpen (8)
- Clay Holmes
- Jonathan Loaisiga
- Ian Hamilton
- Caleb Ferguson (L)
- Victor Gonzalez (L)
- Luke Weaver
- Clayton Beeter
- Nick Burdi
Holmes reprises his role as the closer while Loaisiga and Hamilton figure to be multi-inning arms with the opportunity to split setup duties. There was a big competition for the final bullpen spots. Burdi’s stuff is nothing short of electric, but the injury history is a concern. Dennis Santana could mix in here, but he’s out of options. It also appears Clayton Beeter is making the roster, barring a late spring move to add a veteran.
