Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that the Yankees submitted a one-year $1 million offer to outfielder Austin Slater, which could be tied to a previous report by Brendan Kuty of The Athletic that indicated they made him an offer.
He was initially acquired by the Yankees after the trade deadline but did not perform well and dealt with injuries as well, limiting his overall productivity.
Slater was left off of their postseason roster and did not factor into their Wild Card win over Boston or the Division Series loss against Toronto.
New York has expressed interest in a right-handed bench bat, but this interest is more exploratory than it is an all-systems-go pursuit of another addition.
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Austin Slater Received One-Year Offer From the Yankees, Bench Remains Unclear
Last season was not what Austin Slater hoped for when he arrived to the Bronx, as after recording a solid 100 wRC+ with the White Sox and a more favorable OPS against lefties, the veteran outfielder slumped hard.
Gage Ziehl was the prospect dealt to Chicago for Slater, with the right-handed pitching prospect eventually being dealt to Boston in a deal that sent Jordan Hicks and David Sandlin to the White Sox.
The Yankees could be looking at the more favorable underlying metrics which indicate that Austin Slater experienced poor luck against left-handed pitching.
His Expected SLG% was over .580 against lefties last season, and if the Yankees can get those expected numbers to translate into results then he could be a viable fourth outfielder upgrade.
This does raise questions about how the Yankees could make him fit alongside Jasson Dominguez, who is currently the team’s fourth outfielder and also has Minor League options.
When assembling the roster, there’s a bit of an odd fit by having a limited defensive outfielder who struggles against left-handed pitching as one of your primary bench bats.
Jack Curry noted on YES Hot Stove weeks ago that the return of Cody Bellinger does not mean the Yankees will just toss Jasson Dominguez into the trade market to get scraps back, which raises the question about a potential move to AAA.
Brian Cashman admitted that the team briefly considered optioning Dominguez at the midway point of last season, but ultimately decided against it.
It’s likely that the hamstring injury Austin Slater suffered in August played a massive role in that decision as he didn’t return until rosters expanded to 28 players in September.
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