The Baltimore Orioles are far from being a winning team in the MLB, which is why shopping their best players makes the most sense, right? Wong. The New York Yankees have the opportunity to pluck one of their only productive players right from their infield.
Jonathan Villar, a solid infielder who was shopped last season before the trade deadline expired, is now being dangled as a potential option in free agency. While Villar primarily plays at second base, he has experience at shortstop, playing in 108 games back in 2016, logging 17 errors, and a .965 fielding percentage.
Compare those numbers to Didi Gregorius’ 2018 season (full campaign), and the differential favors Didi exponentially. Over 132 games, Gregorius logged only six errors and earned a .987 fielding percentage. Overall, he’s by far the better defenseman. Now, offensively, Villar is far more productive, finishing 2019 with a slash line of .274/.339/.453 with 24 home runs (107 wRC+).
Villar’s increase in home runs relative to past seasons makes him an enticing option for general manager Brian Cashman, especially if the Orioles are desperate to trade him. Factor in that he’s a switch hitter, and the value keeps getting better.
Does this deal make sense for the Yankees?
Realistically, the natural attrition of the shortstop position for the Yankees should include Gleyber Torres, considering they have DJ LeMahieu, who is a preferred second-baseman, on the roster. Torres has played better at second base defensively, but he did play 77 games at short last year, finishing with 11 errors and a .961 fielding percentage. Villar is a tad better defensively, and both are quality offensive players, which could open up an interesting idea for Cashman.
Theoretically, he could trade for Villar given the Orioles aren’t asking too much, and slot him in at shortstop, where he’s a bit better than Torres defensively. This would allow Torres to remain at second base and move LeMahieu into the first base position, pushing Luke Voit into a DH/reserve spot.
While this sequence of events is unlikely, Villar is an appropriate replacement for Didi, and his sudden increase in power-hitting would fit the Yankees mold. He is scheduled to earn $10.4 million in arbitration next season, which is a big reason Baltimore is trying to unload him, but for his quality, that price-tag isn’t overly expensive.