The New York Yankees just got swept by the Boston Red Sox over the weekend. That hurts to say out loud if you’re a Yankees fan. Now they’re sitting in second place in the American League East, one game behind the Tampa Bay Rays. Aaron Boone says the team will be fine. But anyone watching this team closely knows they need a jolt before the trade deadline.
So let’s talk about what they should actually do. Two trades. That’s it. And one of them involves moving on from Jazz Chisholm Jr.
The lineup has a contact problem
Here’s the thing about the 2026 Yankees. They lead the league in home runs. They’re third in OPS. They crush the ball. But baseball is a weird sport where sometimes you need a guy who can just get a base hit when you need one. And right now, the Yankees are 22nd in batting average and 23rd in total hits. That’s not great for a team with World Series ambitions.
Meanwhile, Luis Arraez is over in San Francisco hitting .324 with 100 hits already. He’s got an .806 OPS too. The Giants are expected to make him available, according to reports. Arraez plays second base. Which is exactly where Jazz Chisholm Jr. plays.
Chisholm is hitting .223 with 63 hits. He’s got more power than Arraez, sure. But the Yankees don’t need more power. They need someone who can keep a rally alive, move a runner over, and put the ball in play with two strikes. That’s Arraez. That’s not Jazz.
Trade Chisholm to fill another hole
The Yankees are also reportedly looking for bullpen help or a catcher. Their pitching has been solid, but you can never have too many good arms in October. And catcher is a position where they could use an upgrade too.
So here’s the plan. Trade a couple of prospects for Arraez. He slides into second base. Then package Chisholm with a prospect or two and go get an impact reliever or a catcher who can actually hit. It’s not complicated. The math works.
Why this makes sense
Chisholm is an All-Star talent. Nobody’s arguing that. But his skill set overlaps with what the Yankees already have in abundance. Power. Strikeouts. Explosive but streaky. Arraez gives them something they don’t have — a professional hitter who rarely wastes an at-bat.
And by moving Chisholm, they address another weakness at the same time. That’s how contenders reload at the deadline. You don’t just add. You subtract the right pieces too.
The Yankees have the prospects to get both deals done. The question is whether Brian Cashman sees the same flaw the rest of us are staring at. Because right now, this team is one good bullpen arm and one hit-machine away from being a real problem in October.
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