THE New York Yankees returned to the World Series for the first time since 2009, but fell short, losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games. Today, a crucial offseason for the Bronx Bombers began – and few teams expect to be busier during next month’s Winter Meetings.

All eyes are on Juan Soto and where he will sign. The Yankees will probably do everything they can to bring him back, but what if Steve Cohen outbids Hal Steinbrenner? What if the Dodgers roster is too attractive for Soto to pass on? The Yankees are probably the favorites to win the Soto sweepstakes, but who really knows at this point?

Soto’s future is uncertain, but these five Yankees will be looking for new homes this offseason. These new homes should be found by the time the teams leave Dallas in a few weeks.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work at Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The moonshotour weekly MLB newsletter, and join the Discord for exclusive information leading up to the MLB offseason.

Statistically speaking, Clay Holmes was one of the best relievers in the American League during his three-plus seasons with the Yankees. He had a 2.69 ERA in 220 appearances, operating primarily in high-leverage roles for New York. Its inconsistency cannot, however, be ignored. Yankees fans were furious about it all season long.

Holmes began his season by not allowing any earned runs in his first 20 appearances. His next 20 appearances saw him post a 5.68 ERA and miss five of his 13 save opportunities. He had a 4.34 ERA in his next 20 appearances, missing six of his 14 save attempts. He’s had a great run to start the year, and he’s only allowed one earned run in his last seven appearances, but he’s also had plenty of rough patches. Even in October, Holmes looked good in the ALDS and World Series, but had some shaky outings in the ALCS.

The right-hander is a solid reliever who will make big money, especially with the lack of proven back-end options on the market, but the Yankees have no reason to bring him back. He can’t be trusted in high-leverage positions on a team trying to win the World Series, and he’ll probably earn that chance somewhere. It just shouldn’t be in the Bronx.

Anthony Rizzo’s first full season in the Bronx couldn’t have been better, as he launched 32 homers and had a 130 OPS+. It looked exactly like Yankee Stadium and thus benefited from a multi-year commitment from New York.

Unfortunately, Rizzo struggled mightily in 2023 and had another down year in 2024, slashing .228/.301/.335 with eight homers and 35 RBIs in 92 regular season games. He had an 81 OPS+, which basically means he was 19% below league average as a hitter. He looked a little better in October despite playing with fractured fingers, but he only managed one extra-base hit throughout the postseason.

Rizzo is a great guy in the clubhouse and has won before, but the reality is he’s just not good enough to give up consistent at-bats anymore. With that in mind, the Yankees opted to decline his club option, opting to pay him a $6 million buyout instead of giving him $17 million to return to New York.

With guys like Christian Walker and Pete Alonso available in free agency and other attractive options on the trade market, there is no excuse to bring back Rizzo. The Yankees need more offensive firepower than Rizzo has had in recent years and have plenty of options to choose from.

It’s like Gleyber Torres has his name in trade rumors for years now. The Yankees never moved him in a deal, but it appears the time is right for Torres to find his new home, especially since the Yankees declined to extend him the qualifying offer before free agency.

Torres is who he is at this point. He’s not a strong defender, and he’s not the 38-homer player he was in 2019, but he’s a solid player. He had a rough year in 2024, slashing .257/.330/.378 with 15 homers and 63 RBIs, but he hit a total of 49 homers over the previous two seasons. He can provide a good amount of power in a position where that is quite rare.

The Yankees have too many holes to fill before they think about bringing Torres back. By then, Torres will likely have found his new home. Having Jazz Chisholm Jr. on the roster who can simply return to his natural position makes progression much easier.

For much of the season, Yankees fans were wondering why Alex Verdugo was starting in the outfield when New York’s No. 1 prospect, Jasson Dominguez, seemed ready for MLB. We can debate whether Verdugo should have started all day in the playoffs, but we can’t argue that Verdugo’s time in the Bronx should be up. There is simply no more room for him.

Whether in left field or center field, Dominguez needs to be considered as an everyday player somewhere in the outfield. New York is hoping Aaron Judge and Soto fill the other two spots, but of course, that remains to be seen. Whether Soto returns or not, that third place can’t be Verdugo’s.

The 28-year-old had a good first month in the Bronx after being acquired in an offseason trade with the Boston Red Sox, but struggled during the remainder of the regular season, slashing .225/. 275/.336 with nine homers and 48 RBIs starting May 1. His 72 wRC+ during that span was the fourth-worst mark in the Majors among qualifiers, and he was one of six qualifying players with a negative fWAR during that span. He was 28 percent below league average as a hitter and below replacement level overall. I had a higher fWAR than Verdugo over the last five months of the season.

Verdugo had some big moments in the playoffs, but had an overall OPS of .622 in October, proving once again that his time in the Bronx should be over.

The first four players on this list are free agents, but Marcus Stroman is under contract and set to make $18.3 million during the 2025 campaign. He was signed before the 2024 season with the expectation that he would be a reliable arm at mid-rotation, but it just didn’t work.

The right-hander posted a 4.31 ERA in 30 regular season appearances (29 starts) and 154.2 innings of work. The fact that he was able to eat up a good number of innings was a plus, but Stroman wasn’t even as good as his ERA would indicate. He had a 4.62 FIP, a 4.82 xERA and the lowest strikeout rate (16.7%) of his career. Stroman’s 8.9 percent walk rate was well above his career mark of 7.2 percent.

Stroman’s poor year led Aaron Boone to refrain from using him throughout October, despite remaining on the playoff roster. That alone shows what the Yankees think of him now.

With Gerrit Cole officially back, the Yankees have him at the top of their 2025 rotation, followed by Carlos Rodon, Luis Gil, Clarke Schmidt and Nestor Cortes. Stroman probably wouldn’t even start the year in the rotation if the season started today. A trade could change things, but the Yankees should look to part ways with Stroman before letting any other starter go.

They wouldn’t get much in return, but would be able to unlock most, if not all of his money, given his track record and the need for so many teams to add starting pitchers. Even in his down year, Stroman pitched as at least a No. 5 starter, and his track record is much better than that. Maybe a change of scenery would help both Stroman and New York.