Getty The Yankees need to find a replacement for veteran DJ LeMahieu. Would Giants third baseman Matt Chapman be a realistic target?
The New York Yankees are trying to re-take first place in the American League East from the Baltimore Orioles. General manager Brian Cashman is looking for roster upgrades as the July 30 trade deadline nears. Could San Francisco Giants third baseman Matt Chapman be a realistic option for the Bombers?
The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner listed four third basemen the Yankees could target “since they can’t rely on” veteran DJ LeMahieu. One of those options is Chapman, who signed a three-year, $54 million contract this past offseason with the Giants.
“Because he’s likely to become a free agent this offseason, the cost would not be nearly as high as it would be for [Isaac] Paredes, making Chapman a no-brainer target for the Yankees to consider if the Giants decided to sell,” Kirschner said.
Chapman has an opt-out clause he could use at season’s end to re-enter free agency. He’s hitting .234/.320/.409 with 13 home runs, 43 RBI and 65 runs scored across 412 plate appearances for San Francisco.
How Chapman Would Give the Yankees an Upgrade at 3rd Base
While Chapman’s offensive numbers don’t jump off the page, they’re head-and-shoulders better than what LeMahieu has produced for the Yankees in 2024.
LeMahieu’s campaign began late because of an early-season stint on the injured list. However, he’s managed just a .177/.270/.202 line with no homers, 11 RBI and 11 runs scored in 142 plate appearances. Even if Chapman’s offense didn’t improve upon hypothetically landing in the Bronx, it’d still be a huge upgrade for New York.
Statcast’s Outs Above Average metric (OAA) has LeMahieu (five OAA) ahead of Chapman (zero OAA) when measuring defensive performance. But historically, Chapman is a superior fielder at the hot corner. In addition to his four Gold Gloves, Chapman has won two Platinum Glove Awards. That honor is given to the best defensive player of the year in each league.
Another plus to pursuing Chapman is he plays just about every day. Outside of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, he’s appeared in at least 145 games each year since 2018. He’s on track to keep that streak alive in 2024.
Will the Giants Be Sellers at the Deadline?
Despite making big moves this winter, the Giants entered July 21 games with a disappointing 47-52 record. However, they also entered the day just 3.5 games behind the final National League Wild Card spot.
“The Giants are over the first luxury tax payroll threshold, and they surrendered multiple draft picks for signing Chapman and Blake Snell, two players who had qualifying offers attached to them,” Kirschner said. “Their main executive, Farhan Zaidi, is also under intense pressure. All of this suggests the Giants could become buyers at the deadline, but they sit eighth in the National League wild-card standings. The smartest path would be to recoup assets for a team going nowhere.”
Kirschner also noted that interest in Chapman would be considerable based on his previous track record and the likelihood he’ll opt out of his deal in November. What Zaidi and Co. do at the deadline might depend on how things go over the next few days, though.
While appearing on KNBR’s Tolbert & Copes show on July 11, Zaidi shared what he and his front office are thinking about the club’s immediate future.
“We’re 4 games under .500. Overall it’s been a real disappointment. We pushed a lot of chips in with this team. We need the players to show what the right direction is for us,” he said. “If we keep playing like we did for the last 5 days, we’re going to have to think about selling and seeing some younger players.”
What San Francisco does before July 30 still seems undetermined. If they sell, the Yankees should at least inquire about what it’d take to land Chapman.