Aaron Hicks is Yankees' leftfielder . . . for now
Yankees' Aaron Hicks works out on the field at George M. Steinbrenner field in Tampa, Florida. February 20, 2023. Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
BRADENTON, Fla.
The Pirates insist they want to sign Bryan Reynolds long-term as part of their perpetual rebuild by the shores of the Allegheny, but those discussions reportedly haven’t gained much traction since his December trade request.
The only discernible movement lately, in fact, has been Reynolds himself, as the Pirates nudged him from centerfield to leftfield since the start of the Grapefruit League schedule last weekend.
Reynolds again started in leftfield in Thursday’s visit by the Yankees, who just so happen to be in the market for that exact same position.
What a coincidence.
We’re still in the first week of March, which gives the Yankees the luxury of seeing how their in-house competition unfolds — namely, whether Aaron Hicks can convince the front office that he deserves yet another shot at redemption.
General manager Brian Cashman made a run at Reynolds at last year’s trade deadline, but the Pirates’ astronomical demands forced a pivot to Andrew Benintendi, who ultimately signed a five-year, $75 million deal with the White Sox in December.
The calendar is in Hicks’ favor at this point, along with the Yankees owing him another $31 million over these next three years. That price has hindered Cashman’s efforts to tempt other clubs with a change-of-scenery swap and bought Hicks this opportunity. It’s tough to tell what the expiration date is, however.
Before Thursday’s game, manager Aaron Boone was asked if leftfield is Hicks’ job to lose, and he deftly sidestepped the question without delivering an endorsement.
“I don’t know,” Boone said. “It’s March 2. We know what he’s capable of when he’s right. Just let this kinda play out. There’s other people we’re excited about . . . so I don’t even want to put a label on it.”
If this were a case of Hicks just trying to run it back, we’d be skeptical of his chances to earn the Opening Day nod. But MLB’s ban of the defensive shift should work in Hicks’ favor, as he faced that now-outlawed alignment during 92.6% of his plate appearances last year — the 10th-highest rate in the majors.
It wasn’t much of a factor Thursday, as Hicks went 0-for-3 with a strikeout from the DH spot, but he’s confident the shift ban will be a game-changer for him.
“One hundred percent,” he said after the Yankees’ 9-1 victory over the Pirates. “I think my first two hits [in spring training] came via the no-shift. It’s exciting to be able to go into a season with no shift, especially since that’s all I’m used to. There’s definitely going to be more opportunities there.”
Just the relief from the mental fatigue should help. Hicks’ numbers across the board have steadily declined since 2017, when he batted .266 with an .847 OPS (albeit playing only 88 games). If last season wasn’t rock bottom, Hicks was touching it with his toe, as he hit .216 with a .642 OPS, occasionally looked as if he forgot how to play the outfield and was relentlessly booed in the Bronx.
That a pretty big hole to climb out of and one that Hicks has been digging for years, made deeper by his lengthy medical history. The Yankees just don’t have a no-brainer replacement in pinstripes.
The versatile Oswaldo Cabrera is a solid part-time option, along with sliding Aaron Judge over to leftfield when Giancarlo Stanton gets a turn in right, something that should happen more frequently in 2023.
Beyond that, perennial prospect Estevan Florial is in the mix, along with the well-traveled Billy McKinney. Elijah Dunham and Rafael Ortega also are getting attention, with Ortega going deep and adding an RBI triple against the Pirates.
The most appealing candidate, of course, is Reynolds, a switch-hitting All-Star who’s averaged 25 homers the past two seasons (career .281 batting average, .842 OPS). He went 0-for-1 with a walk and came up empty on a diving attempt in the field on Thursday.
But getting Reynolds fitted for pinstripes doesn’t seem so easy at the moment. The Pirates’ primary need is starting pitching, and Cashman drained a large portion of that tank at last year’s trade deadline by sending three top arms to the A’s in the Frankie Montas/Lou Trivino deal and another valuable prospect to the Cubs for Scott Effross.
As for the Reynolds-Pirates contract stalemate, the team’s fiscal behavior doesn’t really point to a resolution that would satisfy the 28-year-old outfielder, who’s entering the second season of his two-year, $13.5 million deal.
The Pirates currently have a $75 million payroll for 2023, per FanGraphs, and their highest-paid player is Ke’Bryan Hayes, who will earn $10 million this year. Next on that list is 42-year-old lefty Rich Hill, signed to a one-year, $8 million contract, followed by Reynolds.
Reynolds issued his December trade demand after the Pirates made him a six-year, $80 million offer and flatly rejected his eight-year, $134 million counter-offer, according to The Athletic. That’s a considerable gap to close, and it’s why the Yankees surely will keep Reynolds on their radar in the weeks ahead — and months, if necessary.
David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.
