Are New York Yankees interested in trading for 3x batting champion Luis Arraez?

The New York Yankees are looking to add some more firepower to their offensive lineup and have been reportedly been in talks with Luis Arraez.

Are New York Yankees interested in trading for 3x batting champion Luis Arraez?

Luis Arraez (Image via X)

In the ongoing MLB offseason, the New York Yankees have been looking to strengthen their lineup after losing out on Juan Soto. The Bronx Bombers have signed the two former MVPs Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt since then. However, they are still linked with some top names with Luis Arraez being one of them.

The Venezuelan international started the 2024 season with the Miami Marlins. However, he was later traded to the San Diego Padres after a slow start to the campaign.

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His name has once again come up in trade rumors. This season, Arraez was among the best hitters when it came to batting average.

The 27-year-old had a slash line of .314/.346/.392 in 672 plate appearances over 150 games. This saw him being crowned the batting champion once again.

While the Yankees might have shown an interest in him in the past, there seems to have been a change in their stance regarding him. As per Jon Heyman, the Yankees do not see him as a “fit” for now.

Hearing at least for now Luis Arraez is not seen as a fit for Yankees

Jon Heyman on X

The reason for this may be his lack of power-hitting abilities. In his six seasons in the big leagues, the first baseman has managed to hit just 28 home runs. The most he had in one season was 10 during the 2023 campaign with the Marlins.

The links of Luis Arraez to the New York Yankees has ignited debates among fans on social media. The Yankee fanbase seems to have been left divided by this rumored move. On Monday, the player himself reacted to these links.

Luis Arraez
Luis Arraez (Image via X)

In an Instagram post, popular media account Talkin Yanks and Jomboy dropped a post featuring Jimmy ‘O Brien (Jomboy Media owner) explaining why he does not think Arraez is a good fit to the Yankees. The infielder would later comment on this with two emojis.

Luis Arraez' reaction
Luis Arraez’ reaction (Image via Instagram)

Arraez defense and base running is another factor that fans have brought up while he is being rumored to a move to the Yanks. However, former MLB star Cameron Maybin has come into the defense of Aaraez. Taking to his X account, the ex-center fielder explained how he can lead-off the team and provide tons of quality of at-bats to Aaron Judge.

Listen, there are pros and cons to most players and I know a lot of people want to use the argument that Luis Arreaz’s defense and his baserunning is subpar. I’ll say that he’s exactly the type of bat the Yankees need in their lineup. Tons of quality’s at bats in front of Judge and every other team has found a way to hide the so called horrible defender he is. He wouldn’t make them worse, that’s for sure!

Cameron Maybin on X

Despite this lacks, he is still an incredible hitter who time and again can get into scoring positions. It remains to be seen whether the Bronx Bombers will change this stance against him or not in the upcoming days.