With a number of injuries arising in both the outfield and infield, the New York Yankees made a free agent acquisition on Thursday afternoon.
Yankees PR announced:
The New York Yankees announced today that they have signed three-time All-Star INF Matt Carpenter to a Major League contract and added him to the active roster.
The Yankees brought in veteran infielder Matt Carpenter to help supplement deficiencies in the infield. The lefty batter is 36 years old and coming off a disappointing 2021 season with St. Louis.
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Over 130 games and 207 at-bats, Carpenter recorded a .169 average with three homers and 21 RBIs. Back in 2013- 16, Carpenter earned three All-Star appearances. He recorded a career-best batting average of .318 in 2013 with 55 doubles and 199 total hits. In 2018, he slapped 36 homers, but his power has dropped off significantly in the past few years.
Matt has been a free agent this off-season, awaiting an opportunity to help a big league club. With utilityman DJ LeMahieu suffering from a wrist injury, having a player who has experience at nearly every infield spot is a benefit. Over 11 seasons, Carpenter has enjoyed 5,367 innings at third base, 2,316 at first base, and 1,903 innings at second base.
Looking at Carpenter’s power metrics, his hard-hit percentage last year sat at 42% with a 21.1 launch angle. As a lefty batter, he still might have a bit of juice left in his bones to take advantage of the short right porch in Yankee Stadium.
Nonetheless, this could indicate that the infield is in a bit of trouble due to injury. LeMahieu received a cortisone shot for his wrist earlier this week. The Yankees expecting him to return shortly.
Nonetheless, at 36 years old, Carpenter likely won’t make a significant impact, but at the very least, he can offer a supplement at first base to give Anthony Rizzo rest days.