Yankees Make Contract Decision for Anthony Rizzo

Before Anthony Rizzo took off his pinstripes Wednesday night, more than an hour after the World Series finale, he made no secret of his desire to stay with the club. Yankees.

“I feel like I still have a lot to offer in this game in a lot of different ways,” Rizzo said. “I don’t want to take (this uniform) off.”

There’s still a chance the first baseman will be back next year, but after the decision the Yankees made on Saturday, there are no guarantees.

Rizzo is now a free agent, as the Yankees declined his $17 million club option for the 2025 season.

That means the Yankees are on the line for a $6 million buyout.

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RESTORING THE GLORY

It was a logical choice, giving the Yankees a chance to move up at the position and get an upgrade to start next year. The alternative is they could renegotiate with Rizzo to bring him back to a deal cheaper than the original $17 million option.

Rizzo was acquired from the Cubs at the 2021 trade deadline and while he had his moments between the lines, injuries derailed his final two seasons under contract.

He dealt with post-concussion issues in 2023 after a collision with Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. at first base. Rizzo found himself in jeopardy over the summer and was eventually shut down in early August after just 99 games played.

This year, Rizzo was sidelined for more than two months with a broken forearm. Before the injury, his poor production had continued, resulting in the worst numbers of his career. Then, on the penultimate day of the regular season, he broke two fingers in his right hand after being hit by a pitch.

Rizzo was sidelined for the Division Series, but made it back through the pain for the Championship Series and World Series. He hit .429 (6-for-14) in the ALCS against the Guardians, but was eliminated in the World Series against the Dodgers, hitting .125 (2-for-16). He didn’t hit a home run from June 14 until the end of the postseason.

While Rizzo is a good friend of captain Aaron Judge and a leader in the Yankees’ clubhouse, the drop in his production should be enough for the team to consider alternatives at first base. Over his three full seasons with the Yankees, Rizzo slashed .231/.324/.406. His 106 wRC+ in that span ranks 19th among the 27 players who have logged more than 750 at-bats at first base.

First, there has been a glaring weakness for the Yankees for quite some time, a reason for the organization to invest in an upgrade, via trade or free agency. Since 2016, the final year of the Mark Teixeira era, the Yankees first baseman has the worst batting average (.235) and third-lowest OPS (.733) of any team in the MLB.

The only realistic in-house options to replace Rizzo are left-hander Ben Rice – who replaces the veteran after his forearm injury – or DJ LeMahieu. LeMahieu is under contract for two full seasons and is expected to make $15 million per year.

On the open market, the Yankees could sign a big name like Pete Alonso or Christian Walker. The Juan Soto sweepstakes in free agency could determine how much room they have in their offseason budget. Another route to finding a starting first baseman would be a trade. Perhaps the Yankees will take a similar approach to how they tried to solve their recurring left field issues, using prospect capital and pitching depth to acquire Alex Verdugo last winter.

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Max Goodman can be reached at [email protected].