MINNEAPOLIS - The Yankees have already checked off September’s biggest box by punching their ticket back to October. The harder call is still sitting right in front of Aaron Boone: who gets the nod at third base when the postseason starts?
For a long stretch, Ryan McMahon looked like the obvious answer. He was the veteran third baseman, the steady glove, the familiar fit.
That picture has changed quickly.
New York’s roster has shifted around him, and suddenly Boone has more than one way to line up the infield when every defensive inning and every postseason plate appearance matters a little more. What once looked settled has turned into a real October debate.
Tuesday only sharpened it. McMahon was on the bench while Jose Caballero started at third one night after his two-hit, two-RBI performance helped the Yankees clinch.
Minnesota had right-hander Bailey Ober on the mound, and that mattered too: McMahon, a left-handed hitter, had been handling most of the starts at third against righties since returning from a Grade 2 left thumb sprain on Sept. 1.
So Caballero’s start wasn’t just a routine platoon wrinkle.
It may not be a permanent shift, but it’s hard to miss the direction this is heading.
Through Tuesday, Caballero had played 127 games and hit .235/.292/.376 with 14 home runs, 49 RBIs and 32 stolen bases in 429 plate appearances. McMahon had played 117 games and was batting .214/.280/.353 with 10 homers, 34 RBIs and three steals in 340 plate appearances.
The Stathead comparison gives Caballero a 2.3 WAR to McMahon’s 0.2. He also has an 85 OPS+ to McMahon’s 75.
The bat gap isn’t enormous, but Caballero has the edge in every listed rate category, plus four more home runs, 15 more RBIs and 29 more stolen bases. In October, that kind of speed can play even when neither player is expected to carry the offense.
Caballero has kept forcing his way into the conversation ever since he came back from the injured list in May. Boone said then that both Caballero and Anthony Volpe had earned playing time, and that the Yankees would need to move pieces around to make it work.
“It’s a good situation to be in,” Boone said, “because we have two players that we feel like can play vital roles in us winning games.”
Since then, the Yankees have kept moving pieces. Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s thumb injury pushed Caballero into second base last week.
George Lombard Jr. and Volpe have handled shortstop. Caballero has kept showing up wherever Boone needs him.
That’s what makes this such a different kind of October question. McMahon brings experience and a long defensive track record. Caballero brings speed, versatility and the ability to cover second, shortstop and third without forcing Boone into a rigid platoon.
The glove case matters, too. Baseball-Reference credits McMahon with 69 career Defensive Runs Saved at third base. This season, though, he is at minus-1 DRS over 825 1/3 innings there.
Caballero hasn’t logged McMahon’s volume at the position, but his defensive numbers travel well. Across his major-league work at the three infield spots, he has plus-10 DRS and plus-7 Fielding Run Value at second base over 903 innings, plus-5 DRS and plus-4 FRV at third over 568 1/3 innings, and plus-17 DRS with plus-10 FRV at shortstop over 1,763 2/3 innings.
That’s the key difference. Caballero isn’t just a hot bench piece getting a temporary look. The Yankees can use him at third without giving up the multi-position defense that already makes him useful elsewhere.
And then there’s the running game. Caballero’s 32 steals give Boone another late-game weapon without having to stash him away as a pinch-runner. If he starts, that speed is already in the lineup.
At the plate, he has also outproduced McMahon. Caballero is hitting .235/.292/.376 with 14 homers, 49 RBIs, 32 steals and a .668 OPS.
McMahon is at .214/.280/.353 with 10 homers, 34 RBIs, three steals and a .633 OPS. Caballero’s 2.3 WAR dwarfs McMahon’s 0.2, giving the Yankees more offense, more speed and more overall value without losing flexibility.
Neither has been an above-average hitter, but the difference is still enough to matter as Boone sorts through the October picture. Caballero’s case is no longer built only on versatility. He has simply been the better producer this season.
That leaves a 2.1-WAR gap sitting inside a postseason decision.
McMahon still has things working in his favor. He has the longer defensive résumé at third, he remains under contract through 2027, and he’s only two weeks removed from the thumb injury. He also has time to change the conversation with a strong finish.
But postseason jobs aren’t handed out because of contract status or what happened earlier in the year. The Yankees have already clinched, and the rest of the schedule is now part division chase, part October tryout.
Monday showed Caballero can swing a game with his bat and his legs. Tuesday showed Boone is willing to start him at McMahon’s position, even against a right-handed pitcher.
That doesn’t lock anything in for October. There’s still time for the Yankees to keep testing.
What has changed is the pressure on McMahon. Caballero no longer looks like a utility man the Yankees need to squeeze into the postseason mix. He looks like someone making a real push for the starting job.
If that keeps up, McMahon may be the one whose October role gets trimmed.
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