Max Fried, Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger, Yankees' post-Juan Soto decisions

NEW YORK – The moment Juan Soto chose the Mets, the spurned Yankees swung into Plan B.

That meant diverting a few hundred million dollars toward a big, new investment, while quickly sorting through free agent and trade options to balance out a suddenly Soto-less lineup.

After all, Plan A was Plan A for a reason.

“A guy like Juan Soto who can give you 40 homers, hit close to .300, drive 100 guys in – it’s tough to replicate that,’’ said Aaron Judge, the AL’s reigning MVP.

Before the ink dried on Soto’s record $765 million Mets’ free agent contract, the dreaded Pivot had started in the Bronx – a reimagined Yankee roster, done in a rush.

But as Soto returns to Yankee Stadium as a Met for the first Subway Series of 2025, he'll encounter a first-place Yankees team with the league's best offense - despite injuries to some key players.

Let’s examine how The Pivot has gone so far:

Max Fried

May 13, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Max Fried (54) pitches to the Seattle Mariners during the first inning at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Less than 72 hours after Soto changed boroughs, the Yankees left the Dallas Winter Meetings with a Max Fried agreement.

At eight years, $218 million, Fried’s contract represented the bulk of Soto savings diverted to a new free agent target.

But instead of boosting the lineup, this move improved a team strength.

Since the signing of Fried, a premier lefty, the Yankees have lost ace Gerrit Cole (elbow surgery) for the year and have been without AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil due to a lat strain.

All Fried has done is post a league-leading 1.11 ERA, with the Yanks winning eight of his first nine starts.

Paul Goldschmidt

New York Yankees first base Paul Goldschmidt (48) bats against Detroit Tigers during the first inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Monday, April 7, 2025.

A pro’s pro who has shown, at age 37, that he still has plenty to offer.

Goldschmidt enters the Subway Series batting .346 with a .902 OPS over his first 43 games, and he’s mashing lefty pitching (20-for-35) with a .571 average and four home runs.

Along with steady first base defense, Goldschmidt is “elevating our hitting room and culture,’’ said manager Aaron Boone of “a really polished hitter’’ who’d been in decline since his 2022 NL MVP year.

After the Yanks moved on from Anthony Rizzo, Goldschmidt was signed to a one-year, $12 million contract and has offered some protection for Judge. He’s now looking forward to his first Subway Series experience.

“I’m the new guy here,’’ said Goldschmidt. “But any of those games with more emotion, rivalry games or whatever you want to call it, they’re a lot of fun.’’

Cody Bellinger

Apr 12, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger (35) hits a triple against the San Francisco Giants during the first inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tom Horak-Imagn Images

A pivot to the lefty-swinging, defensively versatile outfielder-first baseman seemed natural.

Then, it seemed inevitable once the Chicago Cubs obtained lefty-hitting All-Star outfielder Kyle Tucker, making Bellinger expendable, with a guaranteed $27.5 million contract for 2025.

To land Bellinger, the Yanks swapped journeyman pitcher Cody Poteet, since sold by the Cubs to Baltimore.

We might never again see the Bellinger who captured an NL MVP at age 23 with the Dodgers.

But there’s reason to believe a healthy, soon-to-be-30-year-old Bellinger could quickly improve on his .229 average and .688 OPS over his first 39 games.

Bellinger had a superb spring and a seamless transition to pinstripes, where he’s played well defensively. If the bat comes around, Bellinger could opt out of a $25 million contract for 2026 and become a free agent.

Yankees' post-Juan Soto decisions

Apr 29, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; New York Yankees outfielder Trent Grisham (12) hits a home run during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The wait for Soto took the Yankees out of consideration for two main free agents of interest.

Starter Blake Snell (Dodgers) and infielder Willy Adames (Giants) went off the board before Soto’s decision, “but we had a chance to add Goldy, add Bellinger,’’ Judge said of a more balanced and athletic Yankee batting order than 2024, not to mention a replacement ace in Fried.

Lefty-hitting Gold Glove center fielder Trent Grisham is all that’s left of the young pitching haul the Yankees sent to San Diego for one pennant-winning year with Soto.

But Grisham (.996 OPS,12 HR) and young Ben Rice (.900 OPS, 9 HR) are out-performing Soto in a lineup that’s currently missing Jazz Chisholm Jr., Giancarlo Stanton, and now Oswaldo Cabrera due to injury.

“We’ve all been just relying on each other, that’s what I’m seeing,’’ said Judge, outdoing last year's MVP performance with a league-leading .412 average, 15 homers and a 1.279 OPS.

“We’ve got good depth up and down this lineup now.’’