Yankees ideal corner infield solution has nothing to do with Nolan Arenado

The Yankees front office is working feverishly to convince Juan Soto to commit his long-term future to the franchise in the coming days. No matter what happens with Soto, GM Brian Cashman and his staff still have other roster holes to fill. One of the most pressing concerns facing the Yankees is how they'll round out their starting infield ahead of Opening Day.

Anthony Volpe looks like a lock to hold on to his spot as the team's starting shortstop. Jazz Chisholm could continue to start at third base as he did last season. He could also return to his more natural spot at second base due to Gleyber Torres' likely departure in free agency.

Anthony Rizzo is also ticketed to leave on the open market which leaves first base as another opening. The openings at both corner spots has caused a lot of fans to speculate that the Yankees should be in the market to trade for Cardinals' star Nolen Arenado. According to ESPN's Buster Olney, St. Louis is faced with a "limited market" to deal the future Hall of Famer.

Arenado is the sort of big name that would allow Cashman to win a press conference, but he isn't the ideal trade target for the Yankees. The organization needs to find a younger, cheaper option to man either the hot corner or first base. New York should turn their attention to the Phillies star Alec Bohm who is also rumored to be available for the right price.

MLB Network reported that the Mariners and Phillies were engaged in talks over the corner infield this week but it's time for New York to jump into the mix. Bohm will never develop into the superstar some people envisioned he could be several years ago. He is, however, a young, cost-controlled player who can be an above-average regular in manager Aaron Boone's everyday lineup.

Bohm is not anything more than an average defensive third baseman but his value with the glove might profile better at first. His bat is what should interest the Yankees. He makes excellent contact and shows good power in both gaps. His performance did slip during the back half of last season but the Yankees should bet on his production increasing with more lineup protection in the Bronx.

How can the Yankees and Phillies match up in a trade?

Philadelphia has been drawing a hard line in trade negations surrounding Bohm thus far. Their stance should soften after the Winter Meetings. The Phillies are looking for another difference-maker in free agency and they may need to open up a spot in the starting lineup by dealing Bohm to make that happen.

None of that means the Phillies will or should give Bohm away. He's a valuable starter on a good contract. Philadelphia should be looking for multiple top prospects or a young contributor plus a solid prospect if they're going to part with the 28-year-old infielder.

The Phillies might ask for Jasson Dominguez but that's not going to happen. The Yankees should be willing to offload Oswald Peraza in this sort of deal. The team's No. 3 overall prospect George Lombard Jr. might also interest the Phillies. Add in one more mid-level pitching prospect like Cade Smith and it could be enough to force Philadelphia to accept a deal.

It's unclear if the Yankees have interest in Bohm, but that should be clarified in the coming days. He's the sort of under-the-radar trade target that could be a shrewd acquisition by Cashman and his front office staff.