Andres Chavez
Aaron Boone is back at it again with the positional gymnastics. We have seen this movie before in the Bronx, and usually, it ends with a lot of shouting on sports talk radio and a ball clanking off someone’s glove at a crucial moment. This spring, the experiment involves Ryan McMahon. This one actually has a chance, though.
He is a guy who plays third base with the grace of a ballet dancer and the reflexes of a jungle cat. Now, the Yankees want to see if that same magic translates to the most demanding spot on the infield dirt.
The logic is simple enough on paper. Anthony Volpe is currently working his way back from offseason labrum surgery and won’t be ready for Opening Day. That leaves a massive hole at shortstop that Jose Caballero can’t fill alone. If McMahon can actually handle the six-spot, it gives the Yankees a level of roster flexibility they haven’t had in years. They wouldn’t have to burn a roster spot on a dedicated backup infielder.
A Gold Glove Arm in a Shortstop World
McMahon is a defensive wizard at third base. Everyone knows it. He put up a staggering 16 Defensive Runs Saved and 12 Outs Above Average back in 2023, so you know he is capable of big things, and that wasn’t that long ago. You don’t just stumble into those kinds of numbers.
But playing shortstop is a different beast entirely. It requires a level of lateral range and constant footwork that third base simply doesn’t demand. At the hot corner, it’s about the reaction and the cannon arm. At short, you have to be an athlete in motion at all times.
The Yankees’ skipper expects him to be fine because of how natural a fielder he is. We will see about that. McMahon has exactly three innings of experience at shortstop in the big leagues. All of them came back in 2020 with the Rockies. He hasn’t had to make that “flick” throw from the hole in a competitive game in over half a decade.
The Bat Needs to Wake Up
Let’s be honest about why we are even talking about this. McMahon’s bat was essentially a pool noodle after he arrived in New York last summer. An 84 wRC+ is not going to cut it in this lineup. He spent the winter working on a narrower stance to fix his timing, and the hope is that he can do more at the plate. He’s still got that 20-homer power. He just needs to actually make contact more than 70% of the time.
If he can’t hit, his glove has to be everywhere. McMahon is a “ballplayer” in the truest sense of the word. He told Bryan Hoch recently, “Buddy Black threw me over there a couple of times but it’s not something I’ve done a bunch of. But I’m a ballplayer. I think I can go out there and catch the ball. We’ll see how it looks.” That is the exact kind of confidence you want.
High Stakes in the Sunshine State
The first real test comes Tuesday. That is when McMahon will trot out to shortstop for the first time in a Yankees jersey. Every scout in the building will be watching his first step. If he looks clunky or slow, the experiment might end before the grapefruit trees stop blooming. But if he shows he can make the routine plays, the Yankees’ bench suddenly looks a whole lot deeper.
This isn’t just about covering for Volpe for a few weeks in April. It is about maximizing a guy who is making $16 million a year and needs to earn every penny of it. The Yankees are betting that an elite defender at one spot can be a passable one at another. It is a gamble that defines the modern, versatile era of baseball. Whether it’s a stroke of genius or a desperate move by a team with thin depth will be decided on the dirt in Tampa.
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