MLB rumors: Yankees could be threatened by multiple Gleyber Torres free agency suitors
There is no doubt that the New York Yankees' most pressing order of business this offseason is to keep Juan Soto in the Bronx. Soto was as good as advertised in his first season in pinstripes, tallying 8.1 WAR (per Fangraphs) across 157 games while forming a formidable duo with Aaron Judge in the middle of the order. But Soto isn't the only major everyday Yankees player headed to free agency, with Gleyber Torres , the team's leadoff hitter, also hitting the open market.
Given that the Yankees' focus will be on Soto, Torres could end up slipping through the cracks as he entertains offers from other teams in free agency. And one of the teams that is threatening to steal Torres away from the Yankees is the Kansas City Royals , one of the teams that they defeated in the playoffs en route to the World Series.
Per Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Royals "might consider" Torres as they look for a leadoff hitter to set the table for their Bobby Witt Jr.-led offense. Kansas City relied on second baseman Michael Massey to fill the leadoff role for them last season, and while Massey did as well as he could, Torres represents an offensive upgrade.
MLB teams want their leadoff hitter to not just be a threat on the basepaths, but for them to be able to get on base reliably as well. Massey still has a ton of growth to go through in this regard. He had an OBP of .294 last season, which simply won't cut it for a leadoff hitter. Meanwhile, Torres' career OBP is at .334, making him a more reliable source of offensive production.
The Royals sense that they could build upon last season's 86-win effort and establish themselves as a threat not just to the Cleveland Guardians' AL Central supremacy, but also to throw a spanner in the works towards the Yankees' bid to return to the World Series.
The Yankees, however, don't just have the Royals to worry about on the Torres free agency front. Heyman also added that the Seattle Mariners, San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays are in the market for a second baseman and could look into signing Torres away as well.
Will the Yankees keep Gleyber Torres?
Gleyber Torres is only 27 years old (he'll be turning 28 in December), so there should not be too many concerns surrounding a potential age-related decline. However, his production has been very uneven for the Yankees, as he hasn't been able to recapture his pre-pandemic level.
Torres' power production tailed off considerably in 2024, although he did show off his value as someone who could get on base during the Yankees' most recent playoff run (he had an OBP of .348 and a walk rate of 14.8 percent in the postseason). But it won't be the worst thing in the world if Torres signs elsewhere.
