The Yankees have a lot on their winter to-do list, but third base remains one of the clearest problem spots. With the GM Meetings opening this week in Las Vegas, Nevada, the hot stove is about to heat up, and New York looks like a club that needs to make some kind of splash after getting bounced quickly by the Tampa Bay Rays in the ALDS.
Most of the attention will go to the bullpen, where fans want a standout reliever to team with David Bednar or maybe even take his place. But the Yankees also need a backup catcher, could use help in center field, and still have unanswered questions at second and third base. At the hot corner, Ryan McMahon is currently in place, but after a season and a half in pinstripes, it’s clear he’s not the answer for 2027.
That leaves Brian Cashman with a familiar winter task: find a better option, whether through a trade or another route. Isaac Paredes would be the ideal target, though he won’t be the only team’s priority. If the Yankees want to think a little differently, Minnesota Twins infielder Royce Lewis is at least a name worth calling about, even if he comes with real risk.
Lewis, 27, has had an uneven run in Minnesota, with injuries and offensive inconsistency shaping much of his career. He played 125 games this past season, the most he has logged in an MLB year, but the path there wasn’t smooth. He was sent down to the minors early in the 2026 season, then returned and changed positions, moving to first base while Brooks Lee settled in at third.
At the plate, Lewis hit .227 with 15 home runs, 57 RBIs, and a .667 OPS in 2026. That’s a step back from the start he once had with the Twins, though he did finish with a career-high 24 doubles and improved his walk rate from 6.2% in 2025 to 7.5% this season. The downside was loud, though: his strikeout rate climbed to a career-high 25.5%, the kind of number that would make a team like the Yankees think twice.
Still, there’s a reason Lewis would stay on the board for New York. If the Yankees are looking for a defensive upgrade over McMahon, Lewis offers that. Minnesota used him at first, second, and third base this season, and at third - his primary position - he posted five errors, a .942 fielding percentage, and 0 Defensive Runs Saved Above Average.
That line isn’t eye-popping on its own, but compared with McMahon, it looks better. McMahon had a .960 fielding percentage, but he also committed nine errors and finished at -3 Defensive Runs Saved Above Average, after posting 7 DRS in 54 games with the Yankees in 2025.
Lewis is also under team control for a while, which matters. He’s arbitration-eligible through 2028 and won’t reach free agency until 2029, and because of his inconsistency, the Yankees might not have to surrender a huge package to get him.
A deal could center on a pitcher like Elmer Rodriguez or Brendan Beck, or someone in that range. Jasson Dominguez was also mentioned as part of the conversation, with the possibility of a player-for-player type swap involving two players who might need fresh starts.
None of this is set in stone, of course. The first wave of free agency will shape plenty before any trade talks get serious. But if the Yankees don’t want third base to be a problem again in 2027, they need to keep every option on the table.
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Yankees Fans Still Feel Relief Over These Recent Departures
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The reaction from the stands has been telling, because these exits were not met with much regret. In a market that remembers both production and disappointment, the Yankees recent turnover has mostly been viewed through the lens of relief, especially when the performances never matched the hype or the role never quite fit. For a team that is always trying to balance urgency with patience, the fan response says plenty about how quickly a player can lose the benefit of the doubt in New York. [Read more 🡒]