Juan Soto may be the headliner in the blockbuster deal that the Yankees executed late Wednesday night with the Padres, but Trent Grisham — the second piece coming to New York — is a name that Yanks fans should get to know as well.
In bringing in Grisham, 27, as part of the package, the Bronx Bombers are getting a two-time Gold Glove winner who joins an overhauled Yankees outfield that hopes to improve upon a 2023 weak spot.
The 2015 first-round pick of the Brewers has a career .699 OPS and .216 average, but it’s his defensive skillset that makes him a valuable asset in the deal.
After he made a critical error for the Brewers in the 2019 wild card game, Grisham came back to win Gold Gloves for his play in center field in 2020 and 2022 before totaling seven outs above average in 2023, which put him in the 92nd percentile, according to Baseball Savant.
His defense could be critical for the Yankees late in games, as Aaron Judge projects as an average center field defender while Soto ranks well toward the bottom in outs above average in the corner.
With Soto, Judge and Alex Verdugo — who the Yankees acquired Tuesday — Grisham gives the Yankees extra value to play a strong outfield in whatever role they see fit.
Former Yankees hitting coach Sean Casey said he doesn’t think playing Judge in center for the bulk of the season is the right move.
“No. No. No. No. No. I do not want Judgie as my center fielder,” Casey said Wednesday on his podcast, “The Mayor’s Office,” according to The Athletic. “I just think center field is so demanding, dude, and he’s such a big guy, and to have to demand him to go so far in the gaps and be on the run — you have to cover more ground as a center fielder. The wear and tear on his body — I don’t like it … I don’t think [Aaron Boone] does, either.”
While Grisham’s defensive skillset is easy to see, his offense hasn’t quite matched up.
After a strong showing during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season with a career-high .808 OPS, his stat line at the plate has since plummeted.
Grisham has hit below .200 the past two seasons, slashing .198/.315/.352 this past year.
But the outfielder has shown a propensity for drawing walks, drawing free passes in 13.5 percent of his plate appearances last year, which ranked in the top eight percent of baseball.
New York baseball fans may already be somewhat acquainted with Grisham from the 2022 NL wild card series when the Padres ousted the Mets in three games.
The outfielder had four hits — including two home runs — with three RBIs in the series.
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