Volpe goes gold; Ohtani will be a target this winter; Ben Rice is a prospect you should know the name of; Cashman to address media for first time in months at CEO meetings
MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: Last night, Major League Baseball and Rawlings announced the recipients of the 2023 Gold Gloves, and Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe received the honor at American League shortstop. He beat out the Twins’ Carlos Correa and the Rangers’ Corey Seager for the award and became the first Yankees rookie to win one at any position (let alone shortstop, where only Derek Jeter had won before with fine stripes). As noted by MLB Sarah Langs, he is the youngest shortstop to win it since Tigers Hall of Famer Alan Trammell in 1980 and only the second rookie after Jeremy Peña last year. Congratulations to the Fox!
Anthony Rizzo was also in the running for a potential Gold Glove at first base. Instead of winning the fifth honor of his career, it went to a first-time winner, Rangers’ Nathaniel Lowe.
Sports Illustrated | Patrick McAvoy: Ah, the first week of the offseason – a time filled with clickbait headlines, months-old rumors presented as breaking news, and overall a paucity of new information until early general managers meetings December. So who is the “highly sought after superstar” mentioned in this title that the Yankees will it “surprisingly” continue this winter? None other than Shohei Ohtani, the player whose free agency has been the big topic of conversation since Aaron Judge signed his contract last winter. Referring to Bob Nightengale’s comments, McAvoy notes that although the Dodgers remain favorites, half the league will be chasing the two-way player.
The hot stove can’t come soon enough.
FanGraphs | David Laurila: Which Yankees prospect had the best performance, at least by wRC+, within the farm system? Was it Jasson Domínguez or Austin Wells, two prospects who moved up several ranks to make their major league debuts in early September? Maybe Spencer Jones, who looks like the result of a science experiment that saw Aaron Judge cloned and turned into a left-handed hitter? No, it was Ben Rice, a catcher who spent most of the year at Double-A Somerset and slashed .324/.434/.615 with 20 homers. Although very few people know about him, his low strikeout rate (18.7%) compared to most power hitters and high walk rate (13.3%) should give fans something to think about. enthuse.
New York Post | Greg Joyce: Throughout the early winter, rumors and leaks spread from Yankee Stadium and spring training facilities about the team’s audit and soul-searching after that disastrous season. The general managers’ meetings in December should provide some additional clues, however, since it will be the first time since August that Brian Cashman will step in front of a microphone. Given Cashman’s tendency to use a lot of words to say nothing we don’t already know, it’s unlikely we’ll get any major insight into the team’s self-reflection, but it will at least be something.
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