The Yankees have a familiar winter problem on their hands: a lineup that still tilts left, and a center-field question that isn’t going away.
Brian Cashman made that much clear this week. Spencer Jones may have flashed enough to matter, but the general manager isn’t ready to just hand him the job. Cashman said Jones “probably profiles better on the corner,” according to ESPN, which leaves New York shopping for a right-handed center fielder who can cover ground and help balance the roster.
That search got a lot trickier when Washington locked up Jacob Young. For months, Young looked like the neatest answer for the Yankees - right-handed bat, elite defense, and a player often linked to New York in trade chatter. But the Nationals took him off the board Nov. 6 with a four-year, $23 million extension that includes an $8 million club option for 2031 and a $2 million assignment bonus if he’s traded, The Associated Press reported.
Young hit .252 with 10 homers and a 95 wRC+ in 2026, according to FanGraphs. For the Yankees, the bigger issue is that his new deal makes him much more expensive to chase.
That’s why Jake Meyers starts to make sense as the cheaper version of the same idea.
Meyers, who became a free agent Nov. 2 after Houston outrighted him off its 40-man roster, brings the exact kind of profile the Yankees can use: right-handed bat, left-handed throw, and a glove that has already played at a high level in center. He was Houston’s Opening Day center fielder in each of the past four seasons, MLB.com reported, and he finished as a Gold Glove finalist in 2024 before posting 5 defensive runs saved and 9 outs above average in 2025, per FanGraphs and Statcast.
The bat is where the gamble lives. Meyers hit .213 with a .268 on-base percentage and a .326 slugging percentage in 57 games in 2026, adding three homers and 11 RBIs. A right oblique strain and a knee fracture at Triple-A Sugar Land wrecked his season and shut him down in mid-September.
Still, there’s a reason he’s on the radar. In 2025, Meyers put together the best offensive season of his career, hitting .292 with a .354 on-base percentage in 104 games. His career OPS sits at .671, a touch better than Young’s .652.
The split numbers also help the case. Meyers actually did more damage against left-handers in 2026, posting a .728 OPS in 47 plate appearances against them compared with a .486 OPS in 95 plate appearances against right-handers, according to RotoWire split data. That kind of usage lines up neatly with a Yankees platoon setup.
Cashman didn’t sound locked into any one answer at the meetings in Las Vegas, which he described as “an information grab.” Bullpen help is the top priority, especially with closer David Bednar and Paul Blackburn in free agency. Bednar has until Nov. 17 to accept a one-year, $23.15 million qualifying offer.
But the outfield picture is still unsettled. Cashman said Aaron Judge will likely spend more time at designated hitter in 2027 after an injury-shortened season, and that could push Jones to right field on some nights while opening center.
Asked about Jones, Cashman didn’t close the door on the rookie.
“You could dream on a lot of things with that guy,” Cashman said.
He also made it clear the roster is still very much under construction.
“But it’s November,” Cashman said. “I’m not saying anybody’s our second baseman, our center fielder, our first baseman or DH.”
Meyers has durability questions, too. He’s logged 494 games in center field for Houston since 2021, more than twice as many as any other Astros player, MLB.com reported, but he’s also dealt with shoulder surgery, a late 2025 injured list stint and two separate injuries in 2026.
Even so, the price tag is part of the appeal. After a lost season, Meyers would likely come cheap, perhaps on a near-minimum deal or a minor league contract.
As of Saturday, he was still unsigned, and the Yankees had not been publicly tied to him since he hit the market. New York also has other needs to sort through, including a right-handed-hitting catcher to back up Austin Wells and help at third base after Ryan McMahon’s struggles. With bigger money likely reserved for the bullpen and infield, a low-cost outfield move may have to wait.
For now, though, the Yankees still have one obvious opening: a right-handed glove in center field.
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