Miami offered a lot for Jazz—great weather—but it couldn’t hold a candle to the aggressive New York fan base and the constant spotlight on the Yankees.
“He likes the light,“ said former Yankees captain and ex-Marlins skipper Don Mattingly. And with four home runs in his first four games with the Yankees, it’s safe to say Mattingly was spot on.
Brian Cashman and the Yankees front office had quite the task in this trade deadline. With only one guaranteed year with Juan Soto, they knew they couldn’t just count on injured players returning and call them makeshift trade deadline acquisitions.
Out of all the years, this was one year when something like that wouldn’t fly. They had a stacked outfield, and Jazz was manning the outfield for the Marlins.
Other options included players like Luis Rengifo, Jonathan India, Isaac Paredes, and Yandy Diaz. But each came with their own rather difficult clauses. The deadline required creativity, and there was chatter that Jazz wanted to return to the dirt.
Since Chisholm joined the Yankees, the team has rocketed back to the top of MLB’s offensive stat sheet, averaging 5.16 runs per game. Jazz has been on fire, boasting a solid 1.064 OPS with four quick home runs in pinstripes.
His arrival seems to have sparked the whole lineup: Anthony Volpe, Austin Wells, and even Gleyber Torres have found new life at the plate. DJ LeMahieu, who had been struggling since his return, is now having some great at-bats too.
The Yankees are definitely heating up, and Jazz has been a big part of that resurgence.
Chisholm Jr. has made it crystal clear that he loves New York. And he’s doing all this while playing a position he’s never played before, with some Jazz.
Who would’ve thought that a player who’s never played third base would be better at it than most of the current Yankees third basemen?
He has already made some solid plays at third, including a crucial pick-off of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. that saved Gerrit Cole from an early exit in what was a mixed outing.
