With the surprise signing of Troy Tulowitzki, the New York Yankees currently utility man Tyler Wade might have to give something up.
A big free agent signing was on the wish list for the New York Yankees this offseason. However, I don’t believe the Troy Tulowitzki signing was what they were expecting.
Regardless, Tulo is officially a Yankee and is expected to take over while Didi Gregorius recovers from surgery sustained this offseason.
The idea of signing Tulo isn’t to deter the Bombers from inking Manny Machado but to use him for Gregorius’ time off the field and then convert him into a utility infielder after his return.
But there’s one problem with that…the Yankees already have a utility infielder on the roster. That guy would be Tyler Wade.
While he didn’t get much playing time last season with the Bombers, he has always impressed in Triple-A and his speed will be a huge asset to a team lacking in the base-stealing department.
Tulo’s signing might make a difference in the amount of playing time Wade gets. However, he also might just steal his number.
Well, according to Wade, that might not be a huge issue.
#Yankees IF @_tylerwade plans to drive a hard bargain if Troy Tulowitzki wants his jersey number 12.
"If he wants it, he can have it."
OK, maybe not. pic.twitter.com/z1tIv9Pzxb
— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) January 2, 2019
Wade took time to speak on MLB Network radio and basically handed his number over to Tulo. Just. Like. That.
To be fair, Tulowitzki was the guy that everyone wanted to take over for Derek Jeter because not only was he a great player, but he was a well-respected player. No wonder Tyler Wade wouldn’t mind handing over his number.
[membership level="0"] [/membership]I mean, it’s not like Wade got much use out of it last season. He really wouldn’t be giving up a whole lot.
The Tulo deal is essentially a low-risk, high-reward signing. The one-year deal is for the league minimum so really there is nothing to lose here.
Except if you’re Tyler Wade. But it doesn’t seem he cares a whole lot about the number on his back.
If you were expecting a battle over numbers like with Clint Frazier, you’d be incorrect. Wade is a California dude. He’s chill about the whole thing.