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Yankees Rumors: Aaron Judge back, career revival, trade targets

By Mark Powell

BRONX, NEW YORK - APRIL 14: Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees celebrates his solo home run with teammate Anthony Rizzo #48 in the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Yankee Stadium on April 14, 2023 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
BRONX, NEW YORK - APRIL 14: Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees celebrates his solo home run with teammate Anthony Rizzo #48 in the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Yankee Stadium on April 14, 2023 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 11: Jake Bauers #61 of the New York Yankees looks on from the dugout during the game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium on May 11, 2023 in Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 11: Jake Bauers #61 of the New York Yankees looks on from the dugout during the game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium on May 11, 2023 in Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

Yankees Rumors: Has New York struck gold with Jake Bauers?

Jake Bauers is a former top prospect, previously with the Rays and Padres. However, he fell upon hard times in recent years until his latest call-up by Brian Cashman and Co. In just nine games, Bauers is slashing has a .994 OPS and two home runs.

Bauers has struck out in over 30 percent of his at-bats so far at the MLB level, a mark he’ll have to decrease once pitchers figure him out, or else he’ll end up right bat in the minors. However, as Chris Kirschner of The Athletic pointed out, Bauers has made some necessary adjustments prior to his latest opportunity in the Bronx.

"“Bauers has flattened his bat path over the past year. When the Yankees got him in their system, Bauers’ swing was steep up out of the zone, which led to higher than average miss rates, popup rates and groundball rates.”"

Bauers can be power threat when at his best, and he’s not much help defensively. This leaves few spots for the Yankees to play him when at full strength. For him to keep receiving at-bats, he’ll have to keep up his current hot pace, or else.

New York has been a good spot for players to revamp their careers in the past — look no further than Matt Carpenter in 2022. Bauers had a .304/.448/.797 slash line in Triple-A, which prompted his call-up from New York’s perspective. They don’t have much to lose right now given they have plenty of room on the roster.

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