February 5th, 2024: Bullpen, Extension Candidates, Girardi

Reminder: My annual Top 30 Prospects List goes live this Friday. It’s written and organized and everything. I just need to read through a few times, and even then I know a few typos will slip through the cracks. Sorry in advance. Friday’s regularly scheduled post will run Thursday and will include the Not Top 30 Prospects. I’ve been doing those Not Top 30 posts long enough now that it’s tradition, so I might as well keep it going (here’s last year’s). I’ll have more prospect stuff next week too. Here now is Tuesday morning’s post Monday morning. I’m going to be busy Monday and I don’t want RAB stuff hanging over my head, so I’m getting this post off my plate now.

1. The latest on the bullpen market. A week ago it was reported the Yankees were “alleged to be making low offers” to free agent relievers, and you’re not going to believe this, but those relievers are signing elsewhere. Maybe that surprises the Yankees, but it doesn’t surprise me. Here are the latest bullpen moves league-wide:

• The Cardinals signed Keynan Middleton to a one-year, $6M deal with an option.

• The Mets signed Jake Diekman to a one-year, $4M deal with an option.

• The Rays signed Phil Maton (terms unknown).

• The Angels signed José Cisnero to a one-year, $1.75M contract.

• The White Sox traded Gregory Santos to the Mariners for two prospects and a draft pick.

I’m guessing Maton didn’t break the bank seeing how he signed with Tampa. Maybe it’s along the lines of the two-year, $10M contract the Rays gave Brooks Raley a few years ago? Whatever. I wrote about Santos as a trade target a few weeks ago and wondered if White Sox GM Chris Getz would take a quantity over quality package of 2-3 prospects, and that’s pretty much exactly what happened.

I gave Middleton two years and $6M as part of Offseason Plan, so I sold him way short. The option can push the total value of his contract to $11M. Because they’re in the 110% luxury tax bracket, Middleton’s $6M deal would have cost the Yankees an additional $6.6M in tax. $12.6M all-in on Middleton in 2024? Hey, it’s not my money, and I do like Middleton, but I can’t say I blame the Yankees for not re-signing him at that price.

Diekman was the best lefty reliever remaining in free agency and I had him pegged for one year and $5M or so last month. Unless you really like Scott Alexander or Brad Hand or Aaron Loup, there aren’t any good free agent lefties available. The Marlins have a few they could trade and Getz is presumably open to moving Garrett Crochet. Otherwise the Yankees will roll with Victor González (or Matt Gage?) as their go-to lefty.

“You never know what could still happen between now and Spring Training,” Aaron Boone told Greg Joyce over the weekend. “(Wandy Peralta) has been obviously so valuable for us and gotten so many big outs, especially the last two years, just really dominating left-handed hitters. We got Victor González. We’ll see what we continue to add. There’ll be opportunities for other people to step up. Hopefully guys you’re not even thinking about right now that will emerge and be key pieces for us in the pen.”

After the Corbin Burnes trade, the attention shifted to Willy Adames and Devin Williams. The Yankees don’t need Adames, who is a year away from free agency (unless they put him at third base?), though there is a place for Williams in every bullpen. He’s two years away from free agency and he’s not cheap: $7M in 2024 with a $10.5M club option for 2025 ($250,000 buyout). Not cheap for the Brewers, I should say.

Williams is two years away from free agency (even if the club option is declined, he’ll remain under team control as an arbitration-eligible player) and the Brewers traded Josh Hader when he was 1.5 years away from free agency. Trade for Williams and you get him for two postseason runs, like Hader. Here is a 2024 Yankees equivalent to the 2022 Hader trade:

• OF Esteury Ruiz: IF Jorbit Vivas (upper minors stats over scouting report prospect)

• LHP Robert Gasser: LHP Kyle Carr (most recent second round pick)

• LHP Taylor Rogers: RHP Tommy Kahnle (veteran rental reliever)

• RHP Dinelson Lamet (salary offset)

Lamet made $4.775M that year and had already outlived his usefulness as a big leaguer. He was included in the trade to offset part of Hader’s $11M salary (the Brewers DFAed Lamet four days after the trade). Carr was a third rounder, not a second rounder like Gasser, though that’s close enough. Point is, Milwaukee did not get an elite prospect or top young big leaguer for Hader. Would they take the same for Williams? Call and ask!

Relievers are unpredictable, though that second year of Williams would be very valuable to the Yankees with Kahnle, Clay Holmes, and Jonathan Loáisiga all becoming free agents after this season. The Yankees could pair Williams with Holmes in 2024, and then have Williams to anchor the bullpen in 2025. After the Burnes trade, the Yankees should ask about Williams. Make the Brewers tell you no, he’s not available.

The Yankees have been quiet since the Marcus Stroman and Luke Weaver signings and those two being the end of their offseason would a) be a letdown, and b) fit the pattern of recent offseasons. The Yankees never get that one last piece or two, and they go into the regular season with an incomplete roster. Last year it was left field. This year it looks like it’ll be the pitching staff, and a bullpen arm in particular.

To their credit, the Yankees always figure out their bullpen. Their bullpen was first in ERA, second in wOBA allowed, and first in WAR last season. Still, no Wandy and no Mike King* hurts, and Kahnle (shoulder) and Loáisiga (elbow) finished 2023 on the injured list. Maybe they’ll surprise us and add to the bullpen. It feels a little too much like the Yankees are done adding to the roster for my liking though. Groan.

* The Yankees were going to have to replace King’s bullpen innings no matter what this offseason. If they hadn’t traded him for Juan Soto, King would’ve been in the rotation.

2. Examining the Yankees' top extension candidates. It is now February and Spring Training is only a week away. It’s also extension season. This has been a slow offseason, but generally speaking, teams use November, December, and January to upgrade their rosters. They then shift their focus and use February and March to lock up their players.

The Yankees are more than willing to let their players play out their team control years without an extension. I think it has to do with the luxury tax, as I explained in last week’s mailbag, though there could be a million other reasons. Here are the last six players the Yankees have signed to extensions during their team control years:

• Aaron Hicks: 7 years, $70M in Feb. 2019 (one year before free agency)

• Luis Severino: 4 years, $40M in Feb. 2019 (four years before free agency)

• Brett Gardner: 4 years, $52M in Feb. 2014 (one year before free agency)

• Robinson Canó: 4 years, $30M in Feb. 2008 (four years before free agency)

• Javy Vazquez: 4 years, $45M in Jan. 2004 (one year before free agency)

• Derek Jeter: 10 years, $189M in Feb. 2001 (one year before free agency)

That’s it. Six extensions this century for players under team control, and four of the six were signed when the player was a year away from free agency. The Yankees did try to extend Aaron Judge before Opening Day 2022, when he was a year away from free agency, but Judge rejected their offer. Even if we give the Yankees credit for trying with Judge, that’s still only seven extensions in over two decades.

I have no reason to think the Yankees will shift gears and start handing out extensions anytime soon. And, frankly, they don’t have many great extension candidates. Obviously they would love to sign Juan Soto long-term, but he’s not going to sign an extension. The Yankees will have to win a free agent bidding war to keep him beyond 2024. They knew that going into the trade. It wasn’t some big secret.

The Yankees aren’t keen to hand out extensions and yet, nevertheless, here I am talking about players the Yankees could possibly extend, and what those extensions could look like. I mean, it didn’t look like the Yankees would extend anyone a few years ago, then Hicks and Severino signed their deals within a few days of each other. These things can change really quickly. With one phone call or text.

I am leaving Soto out of this exercise because he’s not signing an extension. We will have plenty of time to talk about Soto’s next contract later this year. I see six potential extension candidates on the roster, some of whom are more desirable than others. Here are those extension candidates in order of service time.

Gleyber Torres

Free agency: 2024-25 offseason (5.162 service time)

The player: Things were a little bumpy there in 2020 and 2021, but Gleyber has been an above-average middle infielder for four of his six MLB seasons (and four of his five 162-game seasons). That includes a .273/.347/.453 (123 wRC+) line last year and a career average of +3.2 WAR per 162 games. Also, since his call up in 2018, Torres has played 734 of 851 possible regular season games, or 86%. He has been durable, for the most part.

Over the last two seasons Torres trails only Jose Altuve in wRC+ among full-time second basemen, and he’s behind only Altuve, Andrés Giménez, and Marcus Semien in WAR. For what it’s worth, ZiPS projects Gleyber at fourth in wRC+ and fifth in WAR among full-time second basemen in 2024. He’s not a truly elite player, but he’s very good, and something like the fifth or sixth best player at his position.

Here’s another important data point: Gleyber just turned 27 in December. He’s (probably) not a 10-12 year contact guy. An extension would buy his late 20s and early 30s, and not leave the Yankees on the hook for his mid-to-late 30s, when he’s in decline. Extending a 30 or 31-year-old can be risky. A 27-year-old though? Those are the players you should lock up. They still have a lot of baseball ahead of them.

Extension benchmark: Players who sign extensions one year before free agency typically get free agent contracts. When Hicks signed his deal, the going rate for a free agent center fielder was five years and $80M (Lorenzo Cain and Dexter Fowler money). Hicks got $70M instead of $80M because of his injury history, and the Yankees stretched it out over seven years for luxury tax purposes, but it was a free agent contract.

I love the guy, but Torres isn’t getting Corey Seager or Trea Turner money. He’s closer to the Javy Báez, Dansby Swanson, and Trevor Story range. Those three all received 6-7 year deals worth $23M to $25M per year, and they all signed their contracts heading into their age 29 season. Torres will be 28 heading into the first year of his free agent contract. A one-year difference in age can be a big deal in free agency.

The Yankees and Torres agreed to a $14.2M salary for 2024 a few weeks ago. Add seven years at $25M a year (roughly Semien’s and Swanson’s contract) on top of that, and it’s eight years and $189.2M covering Gleyber’s age 27-34 seasons. It’s a lot! But Semien will earn $143.025M from ages 27-34 and he didn’t become a free agent until he was 31. Swanson will get $167M from ages 27-34. Factor in inflation and Torres being younger than those two, and $189.2M for ages 27-34 isn’t crazy.

Gleyber has said (on several occasions) he would like to remain a Yankee long-term. Enough to take a discount and make it, say, $22M a year rather than $25M a year? Probably not, but you never know. Given his age and production, and recent free agent contracts for above-average middle infielders, six or seven years in the $25M a year range is where the Torres market sits. That number obviously could change depending how 2024 plays out, but we’re talking about an extension, so that’s the number right now.

Should the Yankees do it? Should they? Yeah, I think so. Replacing Torres will be very difficult, and even if Oswald Peraza and/or Jorbit Vivas break out this year, great! Let’s try the “the Yankees have too many good players” thing for once. The opposite has been true the last few years. I can understand being skittish about $20M+ a year for Torres, but that’s the market. Good 20-somethings aren’t cheap.

Alex Verdugo

Free agency: 2024-25 offseason (5.078 service time)

The player: The Yankees sought out left-handed hitters with better than average contact skills this offseason and that led them to Verdugo. He’s left-handed and he sure does make a lot of contact. Here are Verdugo’s swinging strike rates over the years:

• 2023: 5.6% (sixth lowest in baseball)

• 2022-23: 5.9% (seventh lowest in baseball)

• 2021-23: 6.5% (21st lowest in baseball)

• 2020-23: 6.5% (24th lowest in baseball)

Verdugo is whiffing less and less with each passing season. But also his production is trending down too? When I looked into Verdugo a few weeks ago, I noted he peaked during the 2020 pandemic season and has gradually been getting a little less productive with each passing season, bottoming out at .264/.324/.421 (98 wRC+) in 2023. I’m kinda curious to see how his opposite field approach plays in Yankee Stadium too.

Verdugo’s defense has been all over the place according to the numbers. The consensus seems to be that he’s good but not great, and prone to the occasional mistake. That more or less describes Torres at second base too, right? Anyway, Verdugo turns 28 in May, so he will have age on his side heading into free agency. His reputation as something less than a stellar teammate will work against him though.

Extension benchmark: The first name that jumped to mind is Andrew Benintendi. Benintendi signed his five-year, $75M contract with the White Sox at age 28, the same age Verdugo will be this offseason, and they are very similar as contact-over-power lefty hitters with good corner outfield defense. Here are a few other recent free agents who also fit the bill:

• Masataka Yoshida: 5 years, $90M (age 29)

• Seiya Suzuki: 5 years, $85M (age 27)

• Jurickson Profar: 3 years, $20M (age 28)

Those three and Benintendi are it as far as free agent corner outfielders in their 20s the last few years. And Suzuki’s a power guy. He doesn’t fit the profile. Benintendi’s contract seems like the best fit. Suzuki and Yoshida were coming over from Japan and Profar’s deal included two opt outs, so it was really a souped up one-year contract. I think Benintendi’s deal is the benchmark for Verdugo.

Should the Yankees do it? I would hold off. Let’s see how Verdugo performs this season and how he meshes with the organization before locking him up long-term. With Torres, the Yankees have a long history with him, and know everything about him. Verdugo is brand new to the team. And chances are it won’t be a fierce bidding war after the season like Soto, right? The Yankees can be patient with this one.

Clay Holmes

Free agency: 2024-25 offseason (5.031 service time)

The player: We were spoiled by Mariano Rivera. Holmes is top tier elite and yet he doesn’t get enough respect from a big chunk of the fan base. The chunk that constantly calls for him to be replaced as closer. Since joining the Yankees at the 2021 trade deadline, here’s where Holmes ranks among all relievers (min. 120 innings):

• ERA: 2.50 (16th)

• FIP: 2.63 (7th)

• K-BB%: 19.7% (28th)

• GB%: 69.1% (2nd)

• HR/9: 0.35 (1st)

• wOBA allowed: .249 (6th)

• WAR: +3.5 (8th)

Holmes joined the Yankees at the 2021 deadline and became one of the best relievers in baseball almost literally overnight. He’s been nails in his limited postseason action (8 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K) and he has shown he has the short memory you want in a late inning reliever. Can Holmes close out games in New York? I think the answer is unequivocally yes at this point. He’s not Rivera, but he is excellent.

The downside is Holmes loses control of his sinker for a stretch two or three times a year, though every late inning guy runs into bad stretches now and then. He always gets himself back on the rails. Holmes has an injury history though. He had Tommy John surgery back in 2014, and in 2022, he missed time late in the season with a shoulder capsule injury. Holmes didn’t need surgery, but still, capsule trouble is scary.

Extension benchmark: Again, players who sign extensions one year prior to free agency typically get free agent contracts. There is no discount. Holmes is not in Edwin Díaz (five years, $102M) or Josh Hader (five years, $95M) territory because his track record is shorter and he’s a few years older. He’s comfortably in the next tier, which is 3-4 years at $10M+ annually. Here are the non-Díaz and non-Hader relievers to get multiple years at $10M a year the last two offseasons:

• Rafael Montero: 3 years, $34.5M (age 32)

• Taylor Rogers: 3 years, $33M (age 32)

• Robert Stephenson: 3 years, $33M (age 30)

• Kenley Jansen: 2 years, $32M (age 35)

• Reynaldo López: 3 years, $30M (age 30)

Jansen is a special case given his career accomplishments. Otherwise Holmes, who turns 31 in March, compares favorably to that group. I think you have to go into extension talks hoping to get it done at three years and $30M, but understanding Holmes has a case for three years and $33M, maybe even $36M. Three years and $33M on top of his $6M salary for 2024 equals four years and $39M. Let's call it $40M even.

Should the Yankees do it? Holmes is great and I hope the Yankees find a way to keep him, but I think waiting is the way to go. As good as Holmes is, relievers are unpredictable, and he is on the wrong side of 30. No harm is player out the year and then pursuing Holmes as a free agent after the season if the Yankees decide to keep him. They can win a free agent bidding war if it comes to that.

Also, I want to say that while the Yankees are very good at unearthing relievers, there's nothing wrong with paying for a top tier guy. One of the advantages of being the Yankees is they’re able to do both. You can continue digging up the cheap guys and also pay for one of the best in the league. Half the bullpen hits free agency after the season. Keeping Holmes as an anchor is sensible, even if it’s costly.

Clarke Schmidt

Free agency: 2027-28 offseason (2.148 service time)

The player: Injuries pushed Schmidt into the rotation full-time last year and he turned in a representative season. Some good, some bad, mostly league average-ish. There are things Schmidt can improve moving forward and I hope he does, because the Yankees could use a rotation stabilizer. With any luck, last season will be jumping off point for Schmidt, and he’ll really settle in as an effective starter now.

The case against extending Schmidt is that he turns 28 later this month, so the Yankees already control him into his 30s. He also has an elbow injury history. Schmidt has stayed healthy the last two years, so that’s good, but elbow trouble has a way of popping back up. There are some performance/command issues as well, things Schmidt may not be able to improve, thus limiting his ceiling.

Extension benchmark: Schmidt is a Super Two, so he’ll go through arbitration four times instead of the usual three, boosting his earning potential. Since 2012, the list of starting pitchers who signed a long-term extension four years away from free agency while being a Super Two is one player: Luis Severino. The Yankees locked up Severino after two seasons in which he received Cy Young votes. Schmidt’s not comparable.

Remove Super Twos, and here are the most recent extensions for starters four years before free agency:

• Marco Gonzales: 4 years, $30M

• Germán Márquez: 5 years, $43M

• Blake Snell: 5 years, $50M

• Corey Kluber: 4 years, $37.9M

Kluber and Snell signed their extensions coming off their first Cy Youngs, and the Rockies typically have to overpay pitchers to get them in Coors Field. Gonzales is the only real benchmark for Schmidt and he a) signed that contract four years ago, and b) had two full years as a starter under his belt. We’re kinda in uncharted territory here. As an extension candidate, Schmidt is a unique case service time-wise.

The Yankees and Schmidt agreed to a $2.025M salary for 2024 a few weeks ago. If we estimate $5M for 2025, $8M in 2026, and $11M in 2027, that’s $26M and change for Schmidt’s four arbitration seasons. In that case, would he take four years and $24M with one or two club options? Something that could max out at, say, six years and $60M? This is guesstimate. I had to build a Schmidt extension from scratch.

Should the Yankees do it? Nah. Unless Schmidt is willing to take a sweetheart deal – four years and $14M or so with club options? – kick this can down the road and see how Schmidt performs in 2024. The Yankees already have control of his age 28-31 seasons and the elbow injury history is a enough of a red flag to avoid jumping into anything. Let’s see how 2024 goes, then reevaluate.

Anthony Volpe

Free agency: 2028-29 offseason (1.000 service time)

The player: Volpe’s rookie season was at best a mixed bag. He hit .209/.283/.383 (84 wRC+) and that is unequivocally bad. It was the worst offensive season by a rookie with enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title since 2017, and that’s because rookies who perform that poorly tend to wind up back to the minors, and don’t get enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title.

At the same time, Volpe did hit 21 homers and steal 24 bases, and he played good defense. Was it truly Gold Glove caliber defense? Eh, I don’t think so, but Volpe won the award. Even though the overall slash line was not good, going 20-20 and playing good defense at short means Volpe’s season wasn’t all bad. The power is real. Now he just needs to fine tune his approach and the rest of his offensive game.

Extension benchmark: The Yankees put Volpe on the Opening Day roster and he stayed up all season, so he received a full year of service time and is five years away from free agency. Fewer players have signed extensions at this service time level than I realized. Here are the position players to sign extensions five years away from free agency in recent years:

• Ke’Bryan Hayes: 8 years, $70M

• Keibert Ruiz: 8 years, $50M

• Ozzie Albies: 7 years, $35M

• Ketel Marte: 4 years, $23.4M

The Albies extension is an absolute steal. It’s the most team-friendly contract in the sport. Marte signed his deal so long ago (March 2018) that he’s since signed another extension (five years, $76M). That one isn’t particularly relevant now. Ruiz is a catcher and those guys come with more inherent injury risk and have different aging curves than other position players. The comparable is Hayes. That’s pretty much it.

Hayes debuted late in the 2020 pandemic season and authored a .376/.442/.682 (194 wRC+) line in 94 plate appearances. That was never going to last (.450 BABIP and 25.0% HR/FB!) and it didn’t. Hayes signed his deal in April 2022, and his first full MLB season in 2021 looks kinda like Volpe’s 2023:

• 2021 Hayes: .244/.314/.345 (85 wRC+) and +2.3 WAR

• 2023 Volpe: .209/.283/.383 (84 wRC+) and +3.3 WAR

They went about it in different ways – Volpe was a power guy, Hayes a contact guy – but Volpe and Hayes had similar overall offensive output in their first full MLB season. Hayes is also a stellar defender at third base. That +2.3 WAR came in only 96 games around a wrist injury. On a rate basis, his 2021 and Volpe’s 2023 are pretty darn similar. Hayes’ eight-year, $70M deal is a good benchmark, I’d say.

There is one key difference between Hayes and Volpe: Hayes was already 25 when he signed his extension. Volpe turns 23 in April and is on track to be a free agent at age 27. He’ll be in position to command a huge free agent contract when the time comes, and thus the Yankees will have to pay more in an extension to keep him away from free agency. The two-year difference in age is pretty big.

Should the Yankees do it? It depends entirely how you feel about the Yankees and their ability to turn Volpe into an above-average hitter, and your belief in Volpe too. The Yankees have not exactly stood out for their position player development recently, so locking Volpe up would be a bet on things improving. Keep in mind defense doesn’t pay well in arbitration. The Gold Glove won’t inflate his salary much.

Force me to pick and I say no, the Yankees should not extend Volpe now. I can understand the logic – lock him up before he breaks out so you get a big discount – but I would like to see some signs he is taking a step forward as a player before locking him up long-term. Volpe’s five years away from free agency. He’s not going anywhere anytime soon. Wait a year to extend him and the discount relative to free agent prices will still be significant.

Jasson Domínguez

Free agency: 2029-30 offseason (0.031 service time)

The player: It was only a week, but what a week it was. Domínguez smashed four homers in eight games before blowing out his elbow last year, and he did that as a 20-year-old. The various top 100 lists rank him as a top 40-ish prospect in the game, and Domínguez would rank higher if, you know, he were healthy. The Tommy John surgery does create some uncertainty. A smooth recovery is not guaranteed.

Point is, Domínguez impressed in his limited big league time and he is widely regarded as one of the best prospects in the game. He is the kinda player the Yankees hope to build around. Domínguez won’t ever replace Aaron Judge as the face of the franchise, but he might succeed Judge as the Yankees’ best player once Judge begins to decline (hopefully that doesn’t happen for several more years).

Extension benchmark: Domínguez is still six years away from free agency and lots of players – lots of very good players – sign extensions at this point. Most of them have close to a full MLB season under their belt though. Ronald Acuña Jr. is a good example. He had his service time manipulated, so he was still six years away from free agency when he signed his extension after winning NL Rookie of the Year.

The best comparable situation for Domínguez is Corbin Carroll. Carroll was a September call up in 2022 and the Diamondbacks locked him up the next spring. He signed his deal with 0.038 service time, seven days more than Domínguez. Carroll played all of September and played well, and he was a higher ranked prospect than Domínguez, but we’re at least in the ballpark here.

Arizona gave Carroll eight years and $111M. Domínguez is a lesser prospect than Carroll was and he’s hurt, and it’s a major injury too. Carroll’s deal is worth $13.875M a year, on average. Would Domínguez take eight years and something closer to $11M a year? That would be eight years and $88M, and lock El Marciano in for his age 21-29 seasons. Call it $90M for a nice round number.

Earlier this offseason the Brewers gave outfielder Jackson Chourio eight years and $82M. Not only has he not yet made his MLB debut, he’s played only six games in Triple-A. Chourio is one of the best prospects in the game (arguably the second best behind Jackson Holliday) and his actual contract is in the ballpark of our hypothetical Domínguez extension. Maybe eight years and $90M for El Marciano really does work?

Keep in mind Year 1 of that contract will be Domínguez’s Tommy John surgery rehab year. It would be a partial season. He gets a big pile of cash coming off a major injury – can a soon-to-be 21-year-old really say no to $90M? – and the extension would still allow him to hit free agency in his 20s. If all goes well, there will be another big contract waiting for Domínguez after the extension. Not as big as if he became a free agent at age 26 as scheduled, but big.

Should the Yankees do it? I’m on the fence and I’ve changed my mind two or three times since this post idea first popped into my head. On one hand, Domínguez barely played this year and he’s coming off a major injury. On the other hand, Tommy John surgery is fairly routine (and less risky for position players than it is for pitchers), and all indications are he has the talent to be an All-Star player. This is the kinda guy you lock up, right?

The Yankees aren’t going to do this anyway so what I think doesn’t matter, but I say go for it. Assuming it is something like $11M a year, that’s nothing. If the extension goes bad, it would suck, but it wouldn’t cripple the Yankees financially. If it does work out though, they’ve got a very good player locked up through his prime at a bargain price relative to what he’d get as a free agent at age 26. Do it, I say.

(It’s funny, I said no to a Volpe extension but yes to a Domínguez extension. Why? I’ve seen Volpe fail at the MLB level but not Domínguez yet. That’s really all it is. Perception is everything.)

* * *

In addition to Chourio, the Tigers signed infielder Colt Keith (six years, $28.6M) to a pre-MLB debut extension this offseason. The Yankees don’t have a candidate for a pre-MLB extension. Those typically go to players who are MLB ready and can step into the lineup tomorrow. Spencer Jones doesn’t qualify. Maybe Will Warren? Extending a pitcher before his MLB debut is asking for trouble though. No need to do that.

The Yankees should see how things go with Verdugo before trying to lock him up. Torres and Holmes are the most pressing extension cases given their proximity to free agency, with Volpe behind them. I don’t see a need to extend Schmidt, and waiting on Domínguez is reasonable given his injury. My guess is the Yankees will need a new front office before they dive headfirst into the extension craze. The current group clearly does not consider them a priority.

3. Rapid fire thoughts. Welcome back, Joe Girardi. He’s joined the YES Network, Jack Curry announced last week. As I understand it Girardi isn’t replacing anyone. He’s joining the usual cast of analysts on the YES roster. This is Girardi’s third stint with YES (previously 2004 and 2007, though in 2004 he hosted Yankees on Deck and didn't do game broadcasts) and he’s also done studio work for MLB Network and game broadcasts for the Cubs. He can do it all. I watch a fair amount of the Cubs because they’re often the only team playing afternoon games during the week and Girardi’s enjoyable in the booth. He’s sneaky funny too (he'll often poke fun at himself and made binder jokes). Good addition. How funny would it be if Girardi spent three hours a night talking trash about Aaron Boone? Very funny. It would be very funny … And finally, the Yankees are heading to Mexico. Late last week the Yankees announced they will play two exhibition games against Diablos Rojos del México at Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium in Mexico City on March 24th and 25th. Hopefully these games will be broadcast somewhere (I assume they will), unlike when the Yankees went to Panama and got no-hit by the Marlins in 2014. Diablos Rojos are the Yankees of the Mexican League, having won a league best 17 championships. Former Yankee Ramón Flores was on their roster last season, as were former big leaguers Daniel Ponce de Leon, Rio Ruiz, and Fernando Rodney. Yes, Fernando Rodney is still pitching at age 46. The Yankees will still play their scheduled Grapefruit League games those two days, so I guess we’re getting split squad action. The Giants and Padres played at Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium last season and it was a launching pad. Baseball at 7,300 feet seems fun. The Yankees will go from Tampa to Mexico City, and then to Houston to begin the regular season, so the travel isn’t far out of the way. As someone who enjoys baseball in different places, I love this and am really looking forward to it. And the fact they are exhibition games rather than regular season games means I can watch stress-free and not care what crazy stuff happens at altitude.

(Send your requests for Friday's mailbag to RABmailbag at gmail dot com. The random Yankee series is on hiatus, but feel free to send in requests for when it returns.)