Former Two-Time Rockies All-Star Gets Released by Yankees in Shocking Move

A former Colorado Rockies star has been released by the New York Yankees.

Jun 28, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees second base DJ LeMahieu (26) singles during the eighth inning against the Athletics at Yankee Stadium / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

A former Colorado Rockies player has been the talk of the baseball world.

In a surprising bit of news, the New York Yankees announced they had designated DJ LeMahieu for assignment on July 9, a move that turned into an outright release on July 10.

The former Rockies star, who was acquired ahead of the 2012 season in a trade with the Chicago Cubs, departed the Mile High City after 2018 following a stretch where he made two All-Star teams and won three Gold Glove Awards and batting title.

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He was one of the most popular players for Colorado, and his departure to the Yankees hurt.

During his early tenure in New York, LeMahieu continued his incredible form with an All-Star selection in 2019 where he won his first Silver Slugger Award after slashing .327/.375/.518 with 26 homers and 102 RBI, career highs in both statistics.

But it was during the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign where he had his best season, winning another batting title with a .364 batting average while also leading the American League in on-base percentage (.421), OPS (1.011), OPS+ (178) and bWAR (3.0) to finish third in AL MVP voting.

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Unfortunately, that was the peak for the former Rockies star.

Since that point, injuries have affected his career with multiple injured list stints in the past few years that have diminished his ability to hit and field.

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Now, despite the Yankees needing infield help, they have decided to move on from the veteran.

It will be interesting to see what's next for LeMahieu after this in-season cut.

Turning 37 years old on July 13, he's on the last leg of his career. But perhaps another contender is able to buy low and get the most out of him for the remainder of this campaign.

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