After demolishing Triple-A pitching for the Syracuse Mets to the tune of 14 home runs in 37 games, Luke Voit is once again a free agent. Meanwhile, the Yankees could use some help at first base now that Anthony Rizzo is on the injured list.
Will the Bombers bring Voit home? Manager Aaron Boone was asked about that after New York’s 4-3 win over the Houston Astros on Thursday night. Here’s how that exchange went, according to NJ.com’s Randy Miller:
His response was very interesting. Smiling from ear to ear, Boone answered, “We’ll see, we’ll see.”
Hmmm.
When a group of media chuckled at how giddy Boone appeared to be, he chimed in again
“No, no, no! You misread that answer.”
Did we?
Boone was asked a second time if the Yankees have any interest in signing Voit.
“I heard he opted out, but that really is the extent of it,” Boone said.
How about this: Would Voit be a good fit on this Yankees team that has scored three or fewer runs in 45.3 percent of their games?
“I don’t know,” Boone said. “I haven’t gotten that far into it.”
👉 Bet $20, get a $200 bonus with this FanDuel NY Promo Code
Miller noted that Voit would be a very cheap acquisition. After all, he was released by the Brewers and didn’t even get back to the majors during his Mets tenure (although he played well enough to). Since the Yankees are concerned with their current luxury tax status, this could be a perfect low-risk/high-reward scenario for an offense that could use some help.
Despite having to listen to “Fire Cashman” chants at Yankee Stadium this week, you’d have to believe general manager Brian Cashman has already reached out to Voit’s agent.
The 2020 American League Home Run King certainly seemed to re-discover himself at Triple-A Syracuse. Across 164 plate appearances, he slashed .264/.415/.643 with those 14 home runs, 35 RBI, and 30 runs scored. Before being granted his release by the Mets, Voit homered in seven of his last nine games, as well.
Due to the lingering effects of his “likely concussion”, Anthony Rizzo has barely done anything at the plate following a hot start.
Through May 28th, he was hitting .304/.376/.505 with 11 home runs, eight doubles, 32 RBI, and 30 runs scored. Over his most recent 192 plate appearances, those numbers have plummeted to .172/.271/.225, one, six, nine, and 15, respectively.
The Yankees’ current plan is to use Jake Bauers and DJ LeMahieu as a platoon at first base. But why not sign Voit? Even if it doesn’t work out, his production can’t be any worse than that. Might as well give it a shot.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
