The New York Yankees had good reason to be optimistic about a return to the World Series in 2025 as spring training opened.
After losing Juan Soto to a record-breaking contract from the New York Mets, the Yankees were able to embark on a more holistic roster overhaul. They added Max Fried to the starting rotation, Devin Williams to the bullpen and Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt to the batting order.
But shortly before Opening Day, things are not looking so great for the Yankees’ chances in 2025.
The team has now lost veteran DJ LeMahieu, designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton and reigning American League Rookie of the Year Luis Gil to injuries, without clear timetables for returns. Those persistent injury issues have now pushed MLB.com’s Will Leitch to predict that the Yankees will be on the outside looking in come playoff time.
“The Yankees will miss the postseason,” Leitch projected. “As active, and successful, as the Yankees were in adding players in the wake of losing Juan Soto, this team still has plenty of questions, particularly in that lineup (which was the case even before concerning injury news surfaced about Giancarlo Stanton and DJ LeMahieu). The upshot: It sure does look like Aaron Judge is going to have to do a lot of heavy lifting.”
Leitch noted that the Yankees are just one Judge injury away from total disaster.
“And if the Yankees lose Judge for any period of time … they kind of look like they’d be toast?” he added. “Don’t forget, when Judge was limited to 106 games in 2023, this team went only 82-80, including 25-31 without him.”
The Yankees also seem to face stronger competition in the American League East division heading into the 2025 season. The Baltimore Orioles still loom with a talented young core of position players, while the Boston Red Sox significantly upgraded their roster through a range of winter moves and the Toronto Blue Jays look to bounce back from a down 2024 campaign.
If Leitch’s prediction does come true, that would mark a precipitous fall for a Yankees team that was within one series of a championship just last year.
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