DJ LeMahieu's tenure as one of the best hitting infielders in all of MLB seems like a distant memory for the New York Yankees. The veteran's struggles at the plate over the last two seasons may force GM Brian Cashman to part ways with the former batting champ sooner than anyone could have realistically expected.
To say that LeMahieu has struggled over the past two seasons would be a severe understatement. In 2024, he was on of the worst regular hitters in all of baseball before his campaign was mercifully cut short due to injury. He suffered another setback during Spring Training which caused him to miss Opening Day.
The results for LeMahieu in 2025 have not been much better. He's only managed to scratch out seven hits in his 38 at-bats on the season with a single home run to his name. Pitchers are routinely attacking him with fastballs with little concern over his ability to do anything more than fend them off in a defensive manner.
At the moment, LeMahieu's defensive value is valuable enough to keep him in manager Aaron Boone's lineup. He has the versatility to play multiple infield spots which gives the Yankees the opportunity to rest each of their infielders other than shortstop Anthony Volpe by inserting LeMahieu into the starting lineup.
DJ LeMahieu may have come to the end of the road
All that might be set to change when Jazz Chisholm makes his return from the Injured List. He has the ability to play both second and third base. Those happen to be the two positions where LeMahieu provides the most defensive value. The good news for LeMahieu is that the Yankees seem to be preparing Chisholm to come back to the Bronx and man the hot corner. Presumably, that will permit LeMahieu to continue to receive regular at-bats at second base.
That might only provide LeMahieu with a temporary reprieve. He'll engage in a three-man battle to win the starting job at second over the course of a long regular season. Oswald Peraza's lack of offensive punch is a big issue for Yankees' brass but he's a more athletic fielder than LeMahieu at this stage in their respective careers.
Jorbit Vivas might be the more intriguing challenger. He's also struggled mightily at the plate this year but he can energize Boone's lineup with his speed on the basepaths. It's easy to envision a scenario where Boone goes with him at the bottom of his order in an effort to energize the back end of his offense.
The other clear option available to the Yankees is to make an in-season trade for a superior infield option at either second or third base. The team cannot afford to carry any total offensive liabilities into their postseason lineup. LeMahieu needs to worry about more than just beating out mediocre in-house competitors if he wants to play for the Yankees in October.
Finances may be the cold reality that keeps LeMahieu in the team's medium-term plans. He still has one year left on the six-year, $90 million deal he signed back in 2021. It's possible that ownership will refuse to greenlight the front office's potential decision to release LeMahieu. Eating that much salary would be a bitter pill to swallow for owner Hal Steinbrenner.
In theory, the Yankees could try to find a taker for LeMahieu on the trade market ahead of this year's deadlnie. They'd likely need to attach an asset to his bloated contract to convince another franchise to take him on. That kind of incentivized salary dump has not yet caught on in the baseball world the way it has in both the NBA and NFL.
There's little doubt that Yankees officials are still hoping to see an unlikely resurgence in LeMahieu's game to relieve them from making such a tough choice. There is a slight possibility that continued good health could help him improve his offensive production. The odds are stacked against that coming together for him at the age of 36. Tough choices are likely on the horizon when it comes to LeMahieu and his status in Boone's infield. The chances of the distinguished veteran finding his way towards a graceful exit in New York are much smaller than anyone would like.