The New York Yankees appeared to be working toward a deal with former Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker during the MLB Winter Meetings but talks fizzled out.
On Friday, Walker agreed to a three-year, $60 million deal with the Houston Astros after the Yankees reportedly pulled back over fear of losing draft compensation. Now they must redirect.
Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY reports that a pair of former All-Stars — Carlos Santana and Paul Goldschmidt — will become the apple of their eye and potential fallback options after missing out on Walker.
The Yankees were interested in Walker too but didn’t want to lose a draft pick in compensation. They still are focused on Paul Goldschmidt and Carlos Santana.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 20, 2024
The 38-year-old Santana spent last season with the Minnesota Twins and although he hit just .238, picked up a gold glove award. That’s something the Yankees, who are looking for defense, will value highly.
Goldschmidt, meanwhile, will be tougher to sign. The 37-year-old slugger is garnering interest from multiple other teams, including the San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, and Washington Nationals.
While the Yankees still are showing strong interest in 1B Paul Goldschmidt, there’s plenty of competition:
The Seattle Mariners, San Francisco Giants, Washington Nationals and New York Mets are all engaged in talks with Goldschmidt, too.— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 20, 2024
Like Santana, Goldschmidt is a former gold glove winner, picking up the award four times throughout his career (2021 being the last). He’s also a five-time silver slugger, a seven-time All-Star, and was named NL MVP in 2022.
However, Goldschmidt’s offensive production was way down in 2024 which may give the Yankees some pause if things turn into a bidding war.
Either way, it’s apparent that general manager Brian Cashman, although not showing any significant urgency, remains on the hunt for more top-end talent to help fill out the Yankees’ roster in the aftermath of Juan Soto’s departure.
