There is a dilemma for the New York Yankees’ third base position. Starter Ryan McMahon has begun the 2026 campaign with an underwhelming .114 batting average and an embarrassing -0.4 wins above replacement. It may be a small sample size, as the Yankees have only played 15 games so far, but the issue at third base runs deeper than this season for New York.
History of New York Yankees’ Third Basemen
In the past decade, the Yankees have trotted out 27 different third basemen to start, and only three of those have started at least 100 games in a single season. The revolving door goes back even further than that, because the last time the Yankees had a third baseman start consecutive seasons of 150 games or more was with Alex Rodriguez from 2004-07.
The most recent season that New York started three or fewer different third basemen in a season was 1995, with the trio of Wade Boggs, Russ Davis, and Randy Velarde. With the Yankees’ lengthy history of success, it might be expected that they’ve had several third basemen start a majority of games over the course of a decade. Alas, there is only one: Graig Nettles with 11 consecutive seasons from 1973-83.
To partially reference an infamous Rick Pitino quote, Alex Rodriguez is not walking through that door, Wade Boggs is not walking through that door, and Graig Nettles is not walking through that door.
There were recent opportunities that Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman could have taken advantage of to fix this systemic issue in the Bronx. Signing Manny Machado before the 2019 season would have had an immense effect on the Yankees and the MLB as a whole. Even signing Matt Chapman before Opening Day of the 2024 season would have worked wonders. Cashman made offers to both, but nothing ever materialized.
The Yankees GM has made band-aid-like moves to temporarily resolve the gushing wound at third in the past decade. Trading for McMahon was one, along with a trade for Josh Donaldson. The six-year, $90 million spent on D.J. LeMahieu was not a bad move in the moment of 2021, but it did not pan out at all as the seasons went on.
Cashman and the Yankees have traded away multiple third basemen over the years from their minor league system, and even some from the major league club. None more notable than Caleb Durbin, who was traded along with Nestor Cortes to the Milwaukee Brewers after the 2024 season in exchange for Devin Williams. Despite altering the late George Steinbrenner’s “Neatness Counts” policy for him, Williams did not fit in with New York. Durbin finished third in the National League Rookie of the Year voting last season and helped the Brewers reach the National League Championship Series. Now, with the Yankees’ greatest rival, the Boston Red Sox, he will have an opportunity to make New York pay even more.
