According to The Athletic’s Will Sammon, the Mets and Yankees are among the teams interested in third baseman Gio Urshela.Urshela is obviously no stranger to New York, having enjoyed a breakout season with the Yankees in 2019 and spending three seasons in the Bronx.
Since that breakout season, Urshela has established himself as an above-average fixture in the infield with a .291/.335/.452 slash line, good for a 115 WRC+ over the last five seasons with the Yankees, Twins and Angels.Urshela combined that above-average offensive production with more-or-less average defense on the infield, where he played mostly third base, along with a few shortstops and brief cameos at both first and second base.The home market has been relatively quiet for much of the offseason so far. The only potential connection that could excite Urshela this winter at this point was a recent report of interest from the Blue Jays, although with the caveat that Toronto’s interest could wane following the signing by Isiah Kiner-Falefa.The relatively quiet market for Urshela’s services could be due to the infielder’s injured 2023 season. Although he hit a healthy .299/.329/.374 during his time in Anaheim, it is worth noting that he only played in 62 games for the club after his season ended abruptly in early June due to of a pelvic fracture.Urshela paired this above-average offensive performance with about average defense around the infield, where he played primarily third base, along with some shortstop and brief appearances at first and second base.The infielder market has been relatively quiet throughout the offseason so far. The only possible link that could generate interest in Urshela so far this winter has been a recent reported interest from the Blue Jays, though even that comes with the caveat that Toronto’s interest could wane in the wake of the signing of Isiah Kiner- Falefa.The relatively quiet market for Urshela’s services could align with the injury-plagued season of 2023. While he slashed a decent .299/.329/.374 during his time in Anaheim, it’s worth noting that he only collected 62 appearances with the club after his season came to an abrupt end in early June due to a pelvic fracture. .Given Urshela’s declining power production as an Angel and the significant injury the 32-year-old is recovering from, it would be understandable if clubs viewed his free agency with some trepidation.Even with the question marks surrounding Urshela and his injury-plagued 2023 season, he is still one of the best internal options on the market this season. The unusually tight position market has been hit particularly hard in terms of available infielders, with Urshela being among the best available players behind third baseman Matt Chapman.Players like Whit Merrifield, Tim Anderson, Eduardo Escobar and Adam Frazier make up the next class of players available, all of whom Urshela compares to relatively favorably. Urshela coupled this above-average offensive performance with about average defense around the infield, where he played primarily third base, along with some shortstop and brief appearances at first and second base.The infielder market has been relatively quiet throughout the offseason so far. The only potential connection that could thrill Urshela over the winter at this point was a recent report of interest from the Blue Jays, albeit with the caveat that Toronto’s interest could wane as the season progresses. following the signing of Isiah Kiner-Falefa. The relatively quiet market for Urshela’s services could align with the injury-plagued season of 2023. While he slashed a decent .299/.329/.374 during his time in Anaheim, it’s worth noting that he appeared in only 62 games for the club after his season ended abruptly in early June due to a pelvic fracture. .Given Urshela’s declining power production as an Angel and the significant injury the 32-year-old is recovering from, it would be understandable if clubs viewed his free agency with some trepidation.Even with the question marks surrounding Urshela and his injury-plagued 2023 season, he is still one of the best internal options on the market this season. The unusually thin positional market has been hit especially hard in terms of available infielders, with Urshela being one of the best players available behind third baseman Matt Chapman. Players like Whit Merrifield, Tim Anderson, Eduardo Escobar and Adam Frazier make up the next class of players available, all of whom Urshela compares to relatively favorably.Given this reality, it’s no surprise that the Mets are at least interested in Urshela’s services. Young slugger Ronny Mauricio appeared to be on track to become the club’s regular third baseman in 2024, but the 22-year-old suffered a torn ACL while playing winter ball earlier this month, leaving the club with only Brett Baty, Mark Vientos. and Joey Wendle as options for regular starts at the hot corner next year.Baty and Vientos have struggled offensively in the majors and have questions about their defensive abilities at third, while Wendle was previously expected to play a useful role in Queens next year. Adding Urshela to the club would ease the burden on Baty and Vientos while giving the Mets a right-handed complement in Wendle, who is equally versatile on defense. Urshela’s fit with the Yankees is much less clear. With Anthony Rizzo, Gleyber Torres and Anthony Volpe all anchoring first base, second base and shortstop, third base remains the only uncertain field position in the Bronx to this day.Although this is Urshela’s initial position, the club still has veteran DJ LeMahieu as an everyday third baseman, as well as younger players like Oswald Peraza and Oswaldo Cabrera who could step into the club’s field in case of injury. Even after a relatively weak season by LeMahieu standards, the addition of Urshela isn’t a marked improvement over the 35-year-old veteran and would likely only serve to further clutter the club’s on-court lineup.Of course, it’s possible that trading a player like Torres would free up infield space and make a reunion between the Yankees and Urshela more plausible. Sammon’s report also suggests that the two New York clubs are not the only ones interested in Urshela’s services, although he does not name any other specific clubs. It’s at least possible that Toronto is still interested in signing Urshela even after signing Kiner-Falefa, but other speculative candidates for the infielder’s services include the Cubs, Mariners and Brewers.Chicago currently expects to use a combination of Nick Madrigal, Patrick Wisdom and Christopher Morel at third base, while the Brewers and Mariners will likely use Andruw Monasterio and Luis Urias, respectively, at the hot corner.
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